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Early  Milwaukee 


Papers  from   the  Archives  of  the 

Old  Settlers'   Club  of 

Milwaukee  County 


Published   by  the   Club 


MILWAUKEE,  MCMXVI 


Prefatory 


The  formal  organization  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  of  Milwau- 
kee County  dates  from  July  5,  1869.  There  had  been  a  tentative 
organization  before  that  time  and  no  fewer  than  eighty  persons — 
possibly  more — had  taken  part  in  it.  It  possessed  a  written  con- 
stitution. This  appears  from  the  following  call  which  was  pub- 
lished in  the  newspapers  prior  to  the  date  set  forth  above: 

"Old  Settlers'  Club.— There  will  be  a  meeting  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  of  Milwaukee  County,  at  the  Court  House,  on  Mon- 
day, July  5,  1869,  at  11  o'clock  A,  M.,  for  the  purpose  of  electing 
officers  and  completing  the  organization  of  the  club.  All  who 
have  signed  the  constitution,  and  all  others  who  settled  in  Milwau- 
kee County  previous  to  January,  1839,  and  desire  to  join  the  club, 
are  requested  to  be  present." 

To  this  call  were  appended  fourteen  signatures,  followed  by  the 
words  "and  sixty-six  others."  The  fourteen  were  men  still  well 
remembered  by  the  older  residents  of  Milwaukee — Samuel  Brown, 
Eliphalet  Cramer,  S.  Pettibone,  Harrison  Ludington,  Elisha  Starr, 
J.  A.  Noonan,  D.  A.  J.  Upham,  W.  A.  Prentiss,  Fred  Wardner, 
Levi  Blossom,  Horace  Chase,  George  A.  Trayser,  Cyrus  Hawley  and 
Bichard  L.  Edwards.  The  Court  House  in  which  they  met  was 
not  the  present  building,  but  the  historic  structure  on  the  same 
site,  described  in  "McLeod's  History  of  Wiskonsan"  as  "a  large 
and  spacious  building  of  finished  workmanship,"  "built  by  Mr. 
Juneau  in  1836,  at  a  cost  of  six  thousand  dollars,  which  he  gave 
to  the  county  as  a  present,  with  two  and  a  half  acres  of  land." 
Adjoining  it  on  the  east  was  the  old  county  jail,  the  scene  in  1854 
of  the  Glover  rescue,  one  of  the  conspicuous  incidents  illustrating 
the  conflict  of  sentiment  on  the  subject  of  slavery  which  brought 
on  the  Civil  War. 

At  the  meeting  in  the  old  Court  House  Judge  Andrew  Galbraith 
Miller  presided,  and  Fenimore  Cooper  Pomeroy  acted  as  secretary, 
and  the  organization  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  of  Milwaukee 
County  was  perfected.  Its  object,  as  set  forth  in  the  preamble  to 
its  constitution,  was  the  reviving  of  old  associations  and  the  renew- 


4  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

ing  of  the  ties  of  former  years.  Under  the  constitution  which  it 
adopted  any  person  of  good  moral  character  who  had  settled  in 
Milwaukee  County,  as  organized  before  January  Ist,  1839,  might 
become  a  member  of  the  club  by  signing  the  constitution  and  pay- 
ing the  initiation  fee  and  the  annual  dues. 

Milwaukee  County  as  organized  before  the  Ist  of  January,  1839, 
comprised  an  expanse  of  territory  which  by  comparison  would  make 
European  principalities  look  small.  The  name  was  first  used  to 
describe  a  political  division  in  1834,  two  years  before  the  erection 
of  the  territory  of  Wisconsin,  and  when  what  is  now  Wisconsin  was 
part  of  the  territory  of  Michigan.  On  September  6th  of  that  year 
the  Michigan  territorial  Legislature  passed  "an  act  to  establish 
the  Counties  of  Brown  and  Iowa,  and  to  lay  off  the  County  of  Mil- 
waukee." The  County  of  Milwaukee  created  by  the  act  extended 
from  the  northern  boundary  of  Illinois  to  about  the  present  north 
line  of  Washington  County,  and  west  to  a  line  that  would  include 
what  are  now  known  as  Madison  and  Portage  City. 

Under  this  constitution  the  club  flourished  until  1881,  the 
original  organization  of  old  settlers  and  pioneers,  the  only  associa- 
tion of  Milwaukeeans  with  the  object  of  preserving  the  associations, 
the  memories  and  the  traditions  of  old  Milwaukee.  In  that  year 
it  adopted  an  amendment  to  its  constitution,  with  the  object  of 
making  the  organization  perpetual.  The  resolution  proposing  this 
amendment  was  as  follows: 

"Resolved,  That  all  male  descendants  of  those  who  settled  in 
Milwaukee  County  prior  to  January  1,  1843,  of  good  moral  char- 
acter, upon  attaining  the  age  of  21  years  and  complying  with  the 
conditions  of  this  constitution,  shall  be  eligible  to  membership  upon 
the  recommendation  of  the  executive  committee." 

Nearly  coincident  with  this  expansion  of  the  scope  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  was  the  institution  of  another  organization 
identified  with  the  preservation  of  old  associations  per- 
taining to  the  settlement  of  Milwaukee — the  Early  Pioneer  Asso- 
ciation of  Milwaukee  County.  This  organization  confined  its 
standard  of  eligibility  to  male  persons  who  had  reached  the  age 
of  fifty  years  prior  to  January  1,  1879,  and  were  of  good  standing 
in  the  community  and  who  had  become  residents  of  Milwaukee 


PREFATORY  5 

County  previous  to  January  1,  1844.  A  large  number  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  became  members  of  the  Pioneer  Asso- 
ciation. The  membership  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  was  for  several 
years  considerably  reduced.  But  the  spirit  of  the  Old  Settlers' 
Club  was  preserved  in  the  Pioneer  Association,  and  the  Old  Settlers* 
Club  continued  to  exist.  Moreover,  a  resolution  of  the  Pioneer 
Association,  adopted  on  January  1,  1880,  the  date  of  its  organiza- 
tion, provided  that  its  members  should  wear  the  badge  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club.  The  two  organizations  held  their  annual  banquets 
together  for  several  years — "twin  cherries  on  a  single  stem."  Their 
objects  were  identical,  the  only  difference  was  in  respect  to  the 
requirements  for  membership — the  Pioneers  restricted  their  mem- 
bership to  pioneers,  and  the  time  would  arrive  when  an  association 
of  pioneers  must  become  extinct.  The  Old  Settlers  aimed  for  per- 
petuity. They  had  planned  an  organization  that  should  last  as 
•lousf  as  Milwaukee  lasts,  and  that  should  carry  on  from  generation 
to  generation  the  traditions  and  memories  which  bind  old  Milwau- 
keeans  together,  and  stimulate  civic  pride  and  incite  civic  pat- 
riotism. 

From  1882  to  1889,  inclusive,  the  annual  banquets  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  and  the  Pioneer  Association  were  held  jointly,  and 
the  names  of  members  of  the  respective  organizations  were  printed 
on  the  menu  cards.  From  the  menu  card  for  the  banquet  of 
February  22,  1882,  it  appears  that  the  membership  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  had  shriveled  to  fourteen,  while  the  Pioneer  Asso- 
ciation at  that  time  had  fifty-two  members.  The  number  of  living 
members  of  each  of  the  clubs  whose  names  were  printed  on  suc- 
ceeding banquet  menu  cards  were  as  follows: 

1883     1884     1885     1886     1887     1888     1889 

Old  Settlers 19         30         32         38         47         83         82 

Pioneers   57         54         54         51         44         33         43 

That  the  life  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  at  one  time  seemed  to 
tremble  in  the  balance  may  be  inferred  from  a  newspaper  report 
of  the  annual  meeting  of  1887,  which  states  that  Peter  Van  Vech- 
ten  said  he  hoped  the  movement  threatening  to  disorganize  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  would  not  succeed,  and  that  John  A.  Dadd  said  he 
hoped  the  term  of  residence  making  persons  eligible  as  Old  Settlers 
would  be  shortened  to  twenty-five  years.     "After  some  discussion,'* 


6  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

the  report  states,  "a  committee  consisting  of  John  G.  Ogden,  W. 
B.  Miller  and  John  A.  Dadd  was  appointed  to  revise  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club."  The  incorporation  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club  was  effected  on  the  19th  of  September,  1887.  The 
membership  of  the  club  has  approximated  five  hundred  for  a  num- 
ber of  years. 

The  rooms  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club,  which  since  1891  have 
been  in  the  Loan  and  Trust  building,  contain  an  interesting -and 
valuable  collection  of  books,  pictures  and  relics  pertaining  to  the 
history  of  Milwaukee.  Numerous  additions  have  been  made  since 
the  publication  of  the  catalogue  compiled  by  M.  A.  Boardman  in 
1895.  Very  useful  for  reference  are  the  file  of  city  directories  and 
the  collections  of  scrap  books  presented  by  James  A.  Buck  and 
Peter  Van  Vechten,  Jr.  The  Van  Vechten  scrap  books  are  rich 
in  biographical  material  relating  to  Milwaukee  old  settlers,  and  the 
information  which  they  contain  is  made  easily  accessible  by  care- 
fully compiled  indexes.  The  pictures  include  photographs,  paint- 
ings and  prints  of  old-time  Milwaukee  buildings  and  several  hun- 
dred portraits.  The  relics  are  of  a  wide  variety,  many  of  them 
vividly  recalling  the  cruder  conditions  of  living  in  former  days. 

The  club  rooms  are  open  on  week  days,  furnishing  an  agreeable 
place  of  resort  for  members.  They  are  also  the  scene  of  the  stated 
monthly  meetings  and  the  annual  New  Year's  reception.  At  the 
New  Year's  reception  of  1912  a  committee,  of  which  Jeremiah 
Quin  was  chairman  and  spokesman,  presented  a  testimonial  ad- 
dress to  Frederick  Layton,  thanking  him,  in  the  name  of  the  people 
of  Milwaukee,  for  the  Layton  Art  Gallery  and  the  Layton  Hospital 
for  Incurables,  erected  and  endowed  by  his  generosity.  The  pro- 
ceedings at  this  meeting  were  recorded  by  means  of  the  phonograph 
and  are  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  club,  so  that  at  some  dis- 
tant time  it  may  be  possible  for  later  residents  of  Milwaukee  to 
hear  the  voices  of  old  settlers  who  expressed  themselves  on  that 
occasion. 

The  annual  banquets  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  have  been  given 
on  Washington's  Birthday  since  1879.  They  have  been  held  at 
different  times  at  the  Newhall  House,  the  Kirby  House,  the  Pfister 
Hotel,  the  Hotel  Wisconsin,  and  the  Plankinton  House.  These 
banquets  have  been  the  occasions  of  many  noteworthy  addresses  and 


PREFATORY  7 

have  left  a  long  train  of  pleasant  memories.  Another  social  fea- 
ture of  yearly  occurrence  is  the  annual  basket  picnic  of  Old  Settlers 
and  their  families  on  the  grounds  of  the  National  Soldiers'  Home. 

The  Old  Settlers'  Club  has  been  interested  in  the  marking  of 
historic  sites  by  suitable  tablets.  It  contributed  to  the  erection  of 
the  memorial  log  cabin  near  the  site  of  the  old  Jacques  Vieau  resi- 
dence in  Mitchell  Park,  which  is  not  far  from  where  the  old  Chi- 
cago and  Green  Bay  trail  crossed  the  Menoraonee  river.  With  the 
generous  assistance  of  George  W.  Ogden  it  was  instrumental  in 
procuring  the  memorial  recently  erected  for  Professor  I.  A.  Lap- 
ham  in  Lapham  Park.  Bronze  tablets  which  it  has  affixed  are  lo- 
cated as  follows :  On  the  Milwaukee  County  court  house,  Jackson 
street,  noting  the  sites  of  the  old  jail  and  court  house;  on  the  Pabst 
building,  marking  the  site  of  the  first  house  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river,  built  by  Solomon  Juneau;  on  the  Uihlein  building.  East 
Water  street  near  Michigan,  marking  the  birthplace  of  the  first 
white  child  born  in  Milwaukee ;  on  the  First  National  Bank  build- 
ing, marking  the  birthplace  of  Milwaukee's  first  white  boy. 

Following  is  a  list  of  the  officers  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club  for 
every  year  since  its  organization: 

1869. 

President,  Horace  Chase;  vice-presidaits,  Samuel  Brown, 
George  Bowman  and  Enoch  Chase;  secretary,  Fenimore  C.  Pom- 
eroy;  treasurer,  Clark  Shephardson. 

1870. 

President,  Samuel  Brown;  vice-presidents,  George  Bowman, 
Enoch  Chase  and  William  A.  Prentiss;  secretary,  Fenimore  C. 
Pomeroy;  treasurer,  Fred  Wardner;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1871. 

President,  Enoch  Chase;  vice-presidents,  Henry  Miller,  George 
Bowman  and  William  A.  Prentiss ;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller ;  treas- 
urer, Frederick  Wardner;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1872. 

President,  Andrew  G.  Miller ;  vice-presidents,  William  A.  Pren- 
tiss, John  Crawford  and  George  Abert;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller; 
treasurer,  Fred  Wardner;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 


8  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

1873. 

President,  Andrew  G.  Miller ;  vice-presidents,  William  A.  Pren- 
tiss, John  Crawford  and  George  Abert;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller; 
treasurer,  George  Bowman;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1874. 

President,  Increase  A.  Lapham ;  vice-presidents,  Hiram  Haertel, 
Morgan  L.  Burdick  and  Robert  Davies ;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller ; 
treasurer,  George  Bowman ;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1875. 

President,  William  A.  Prentiss;  vice-presidents,  John  Furlong, 
Giles  A.  Waite  and  Abner  Kirby;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller;  treas- 
urer, George  J.  Rogers ;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1876. 

President,  Daniel  Wells,  Jr.;  vice-presidents,  George  Abert, 
Matthew  Keenan  and  L.  H.  Lane;  secretary,  John  M.  Miller; 
treasurer,  George  J.  Rogers ;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1877. 

President,  Don  A.  J.  Upham ;  vice-presidents,  Morgan  L.  Bur- 
dick, Herman  Haertel  and  John  Dahlman;  secretary,  John  M. 
Miller;  treasurer,  George  J.  Rogers;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1878. 

President,  Morgan  L.  Burdick;  vice-presidents,  Rufus  Cheney, 
George  Abert,  Uriel  B.  Smith;  secretary  and  treasurer,  John  M. 
Miller;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1879. 

President,  William  P.  Merrill;  vice-presidents,  Rufus  Cheney, 
George  Abert  and  Uriel  B.  Smith;  secretary  and  treasurer,  John 
M.  Miller;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1880. 

President,  William  A.  Prentiss;  vice-presidents,  John  H. 
Tweedy  and  William  P.  Merrill ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  John  M. 
Miller;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 


PREFATORY  9 

1881. 

President,  Daniel  W.  Fowler;  vice-presidents,  T.  H.  Brown,  T. 
H.  Smith  and  George  Abert;  secretary  and  treasurer,  Charles  D. 
Simonds ;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 

1882. 

President,  George  H.  Chase ;  vice-president,  George  A.  Abert ; 
secretary  and  treasurer,  Charles  D.  Simonds;  marshal,  James  S. 
Buck. 

1883. 

President,  Tully  H.  Smith;  vice-presidents,  Thomas  H.  Brown, 
George  A.  Abert,  M.  A.  Boardman;  secretary  and  treasurer,  C.  D. 
Simonds;  marshal,  James  S.  Buck. 


1884. 
1885. 
1886. 


1887. 

President,  M.  A.  Boardman ;  vice-presidents,  J.  A.  Dadd  and 
Hugo  von  Broich;  secretary  and  treasurer,  C.  D.  Simonds;  marshal, 
James  S.  Buck. 

1888. 

President,  John  A.  Dadd;  first  vice-president,  Hugo  von 
Broich  second  vice-president,  C.  A.  Place;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
James  M.  Pereles. 

1889. 

President,  John  A.  Dadd;  vice-presidents,  C.  A.  Place  and 
Hugo  von  Broich ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  James  M.  Pereles. 

1890. 

President,  John  A.  Dadd;  vice-presidents,  N.  Masson,  M.  Bod- 
den  ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  George  H.  D.  Johnson ;  marshal,  W. 
H.  Wallis. 


*  Records  missing. 


10  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

1891. 

President,  Ninian  Masson ;  first  vice-president,  John  B.  Merrill ; 
second  vice-president,  John  Black;  secretary  and  treasurer,  Henry 
M.  Ogden;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

1892. 

President,  Ninian  Masson;  first  vice-president,  Peter  Van 
Vechten,  Jr.;  second  vice-president,  Daniel  W.  Fowler;  secretary 
and  treasurer,  Henry  M.  Ogden ;  marshal,  Morillo  A.  Boardman. 

1893. 

President,  Ninian  Masson;  first  vice-president,  Peter  Van 
Vechten,  Jr.,  second  vice-president,  Daniel  W.  Fowler;  secretary 
and  treasurer,  Henry  M.  Ogden;  marshal,  Morillo  A.  Boardman. 

1894. 

President,  Ninian  Masson;  first  vice-president,  David  Adler; 
second  vice-president,  F.  Y.  Homing;  secretary  and  treasurer,  F. 
W.  Sivyer;  marshal,  Morillo  A.  Boardman. 

1895. 

President,  Peter  Van  Vechten,  Jr.;  first  vice-president,  D.  W. 
Fowler ;  second  vice-president,  W.  M.  Brigham ;  secretary  and  treas- 
urer, Frederick  W.  Sivyer;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

1896. 

President,  Peter  Van  Vechten,  Jr. ;  first  vice-president,  Joshua 
Stark;  second  vice-president,  W.  M.  Brigham;  secretary  and  treas- 
urer, George  W.  Lee;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

1897. 

President,  Joshua  Stark;  first  vice-president,  W.  M.  Brigham; 
second  vice-president,  John  Black ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  George 
W.  Lee;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman, 

1898. 

President,  Joshua  Stark;  first  vice-president,  W.  M.  Brigham; 
second  vice-president,  John  Black;  secretary  and  treasurer,  George 
W.  Lee ;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman ;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer. 


PREFATORY  11 

1899. 

President,  A.  G.  Weissert;  first  vice-president,  J.  M.  Pereles; 
second  vice  president,  George  W.  Ogden;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
A.  G.  Wright;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A.  Board- 
man. 

1900. 

President,  A.  G.  Weissert;  first  vice-president,  J.  M.  Pereles; 
second  vice-president,  George  W.  Ogden;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
A.  G.  Wright ;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer ;  marshal,  M.  A.  Board- 
man. 

1901. 

President,  J.  M.  Pereles ;  first  vice-president,  George  W.  Ogden ; 
second  vice-president,  Jeremiah  Quin ;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
A.  G.  Wright;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer,  marshal,  M.  A.  Board- 
man. 

1902. 

President,  J.  M.  Pereles ;  first  vice-president,  George  W.  Ogden ; 
second  vice-president,  Jeremiah  Quin ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  A. 
G.  Wright ;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer ;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

1903. 

President,  George  W.  Ogden;  first  vice-president,  Jeremiah 
Quin;  second  vice-president,  Gerry  W.  Hazelton;  secretary  and 
treasurer,  A.  G.  Wright;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M. 
A.  Boardman. 

1904. 

^  President,  Jeremiah  Quin;  first  vice-president,  G.  W.  Hazel- 
ton  ;  second  vice-president,  E.  B.  Simpson ;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
A.  G.  Wright;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A.  Board- 
man. 

/  1905. 

/  President,  Gerry  W.  Hazelton ;  first  vice-president,  E.  B.  Simp- 
son ;  second  vice-president,  F.  W.  Sivyer ;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
A.  G.  Wright;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A.  Board- 
man. 


y 


/ 


/ 


J 


12  EARLY  MILWAUKEP] 

1906. 
President,  Edward  B.  Simpson;  first  vice-president,  William 
George  Bruce ;  second  vice-president,  George  W.  Lee ;  secretary  and 
treasurer,  George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal 
M.  A.  Boardman. 

1907. 

President,  William  George  Bruce;  first  vice-president,  Julius 
Wechselberg;  second  vice-president,  John  H,  Kopmeier;  secretary 
and  treasurer,  George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer; 
marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

1908. 

President,  Julius  Wechselberg;  first  vice-president,  John  H. 
Kopmeier;  second  vice-president,  James  A.  Bryden;  secretary  and 
treasurer,  George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal, 
M.  A.  Boardman. 

1909. 

President,  John  H.  Kopmeier;  first  vice-president,  James  A. 
Bryden;  second  vice-president,  E.  P.  Matthews;  secretary  and 
treasurer,  George  W.  Young ;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer ;  marshal, 
M.  A.  Boardman. 

1910. 

President,  James  A.  Bryden;  first  vice-president,  John  G. 
Gregory;  second  vice-president,  Fred  Scheiber;  secretary  and  treas- 
urer, George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M. 
A.  Boardman. 

1911. 

President,  John  G.  Gregory;  first  vice-president,  Fred  Scheiber; 
second  vice-president,  Frank  P.  Wilbur;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A, 
Boardman. 

1912. 

President,  Fred  Scheiber ;  first  vice-president,  Frank  P.  Wilbur ; 
second  vice-president,  Simon  Kander;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A. 
Boardman. 


PREFATORY  13 

1913. 

^  President,  Frank  P.  Wilbur;  first  vice-president,  Simon 
Kander ;  second  vice-president,  George  W.  Lee ;  secretary  and  treas- 
urer, George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M. 
A.  Boardman. 

1914. 

J  President,  Simon  Kander;  first  vice-president,  George  W.  Lee; 
second  vice-president,  F.  C.  Winkler;  secretary  and  treasurer, 
George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A. 
Boardman. 

1915. 

yj  President,  George  W.  Lee;  first  vice-president,  Lawrence  W. 
Halsey;  second  vice-president,  Charles  W.  Norris;  secretary 
and  treasurer,  George  W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer; 
marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman, 

1916. 

V  President,  L.  W.  Halsey;  first  vice-president,  C.  W.  Norris; 
second  vice-president,  Henry  Fink ;  secretary  and  treasurer,  George 
W.  Young;  historian,  Henry  W.  Bleyer;  marshal,  M.  A.  Boardman. 

This  hook,  compiled  by  a  committee  of  the  club  appointed  for 
the  purpose,  presents  a  selection  of  papers,  bearing  upon  the  history 
of  Milwaukee.  The  originals  of  these  papers,  with  many  others 
of  similar  character,  are  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  club. 

(\  .  HENRY  W.  BLEYER, 

.     .  GEORGE  W.  YOUNG, 

GEORGE  RICHARDSON, 

Committee. 


14  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

Here  is  appended  a  memorandum  which  was  handed  to  the 
special  committee  by  the  late  T.  J.  Pereles: 

OUR  CLUB  PRIOR  TO  INCORPORATION :— Several  of  our 
older  members  were  persuaded  by  the  old  fire  marshal  and  his- 
torian, the  late  James  S,  Buck,  to  become  members  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  Club.  The  Club  at  that  time  was  not  incorporated,  but 
it  was  part  and  parcel  of  the  old  Pioneers'  Club,  which  was  com- 
posed of  those  sturdy  Milwaukeeans  who  did  much  in  building  up, 
and  through  their  own  actions,  promoting  the  welfare  of  the 
"Cream  City  of  the  West."  They  met  annually  on  Washington's 
Birthday  to  join  in  a  dinner  and  relate  their  personal  experiences 
of  early  hardships,  privations  and  the  comforts  of  life, — how  they 
built  for  themselves  and  their  small  families  a  comfortable  early 
home  and  partook  of  the  rights  of  citizenship  and  in  the  upbuild- 
ing of  this  city,  so  that  those  who  might  come  after  them  would 
enjoy  all  of  the  pleasures  of  what  we  today  call  "civic  pride."  At 
no  time,  in  the  relating  of  these  early  hardships,  was  the  important 
part  taken  by  the  wife  of  the  pioneer  overlooked  to  be  commented 
on.  At  these  annual  dinners  there  were  invited  the  members  of 
the  Old  Settlers'  Club,  composed  of  the  sons  of  those  pioneers  and 
those  early  residents  who  came  here  later.  These  meetings  were 
harmonious  and  most  pleasant,  and  did  much  to  inspire  the  younger 
element  with  a  greater  desire  to  help  in  building  up  our  then  small 
city  and  making  its  existence  more  conspicuous  upon  our  State 
map.  We,  of  the  Old  Settlers'  Club,  would  look  forward  to  these 
gatherings,  they  became  a  fixed  custom, — when,  on  a  certain  even- 
ing in  July,  1887,  without  prior  notice  or  intimation,  we  were  very 
plainly  informed  that  our  presence  at  the  Pioneer  meetings  would 
no  longer  be  permitted.  The  suddenness  of  this  notice, — unex- 
pectedly to  those  present, — was  such  a  surprise  that  it  took  us  some 
moments  to  recover.  We  immediately  retired  to  Parlor  A.  of  the 
Plankinton  House,  and  discovered  that  we  had  no  legal  rights  and 
no  cause  to  complain  of  such  peremptory  informality.  At  that 
gathering  there  were  present  Daniel  W.  Fowler,  M.  A.  Boardman, 
Charles  D.  Simonds,  George  W.  Ogden,  my  brother  James  M.  Pere- 
les, Dr.  John  A.  Dadd,  William  B.  Miller,  Hugo  von  Broich,  John 
G.  Ogden,  and  your  humble  self.     Two  of  the  members  thought 


PREFATORY  15 

consensus  of  opinion  was  in  favor  of  a  permanent  organization,  in- 
corporated under  the  laws  of  our  State,  and  one  that  would  live  to 
become  a  factor  in  making  and  preserving  the  local  history  of  our 
city.  My  brother  suggested  that  he  be  given  an  opportunity  and 
he  would  within  two  weeks  secure  a  membership  that  would  insure 
life  to  the  organization.  We  held  several  conferences  or  meetings, 
which  to  a  certain  extent,  had  resolved  itself,  without  intention, 
into  a  little  debating  society,  and  it  was  one  of  the  humorous  oc- 
casions when  our  genial  old  friend.  Dr.  Dadd,  would  propose  or 
make  a  suggestion  to  become  part  of  the  object  of  our  Club,  to 
immediately  hear  his  neighbor,  William  B.  Miller,  express  in  logical 
argument  his  opposition  to  the  same. 

The  Club  was  incorporated  on  the  19th  of  September,  1887, 
and  it  was  a  pleasure  to  the  few  of  us  who  met  at  the  first  in- 
formal gathering,  to  notice  that  among  those  desiring  membership 
were  many  of  the  members  of  the  then  Pioneers'  Club.  The  record 
of  the  names,  the  copy  of  the  Incorporation,  and  the  By-Laws, 
you  will  find  in  the  Minute  Book  of  the  first  Secretary,  kept  by 
my  brother.  Our  first  President  was  Dr.  John  A.  Dadd,  the  pioneer 
druggist ;  our  first  Vice  President  was  Hugo  von  Broich,  the  pioneer 
photographer  and  artist;  the  second  Vice  President,  C.  A.  Place, 
who  was,  I  believe,  the  first  paymaster  of  the  old  Milwaukee  Road; 
Secretary  and  Treasurer,  James  M.  Pereles;  and  our  first  Marshal 
was  James  S.  Buck.  The  executive  committee  was  composed  of 
John  G.  Ogden,  our  present  Marshal  M.  A.  Boardman,  and  Thomas 
P.  Collingboume,  and  from  that  time  on,  the  Club  grew  not  only 
in  numbers  but  in  sociability,  and  took  the  front  rank  as  a  historical 
club;  and  we  did  more,  we  invited  for  many  years,  the  Pioneers 
Club  to  join  with  us  on  the  evening  of  Washington's  Birthday  to 
celebrate  that  great  historical  day.  Regular  monthly  meetings 
were  held,  and  at  each  occasion,  a  paper  on  some  early  Milwaukee 
topic,  was  read  by  one  of  the  members.  The  Club,  that  we  have 
today,  is  the  one  that  was  then  incorporated. 

Of  the  organizers  of  the  Club,  the  survivors  are  our  uncle  Peter 
Van  Vechten,  Jr.,  George  W.  Ogden,  and  myself. 

We  have  never  had  any  cause  to  regret;  on  the  contrary,  we 
have  always  been  proud  of  our  Club,  and  we  still  hope  that  some 
day  in  the  near  future,  we  may  have  a  home  owned  by  the  Club, 
in  which  all  of  the  pleasures  of  companionship  and  membership 
may  be  enjoyed  to  the  fullest  extent,  and  to  which  many  more  of 
the  early  historical  relics  can  be  added.  ip  j  pERELES 


16  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 


CONTENTS 

1  Prefatory 

2  Early  Settlers Peter  Johnson 

3  In  the  'Thirties H.  C.  White 

4  Pioneer  Land  Speculation Silas  Chapman 

5  Boyhood  Memories A.  W.  Kellogg 

6  Girlhood  Memories Mrs.  M,  D.  Ellsworth 

7  A  Popular  Street  Corner D.  W.  Fowler 

8  Anecdotes  of  Pioneers Peter  Van  Vechten 

9  Waterfront  and  Shipping M.  A.  Boardman 

10  A  Sailor's  Narrative Capt.  William  Callaway 

11  Milwaukee's  First  Eailway James  Seville 

12  First  Locomotive  Built  in  Milwaukee G.  Richardson 

13  An  Up-River  Mystery Jeremiah  Quin 

14  Early  Physicians  and  Druggists John  A.  Dadd 

15  First  Small-pox  Epidemic Dr.  J.  B.  Selby 

16  Milwaukee  in  the  Mexican  War H.  W.  Bleyer 

17  Dr.  I.  A.  Lapham W.  W.  Wight 


Early  Settlers 

Paper  Read  by  Peter  Johnston  Sept.  6th,  1897. 

Henry  Legler,  in  his  excellent  "Story  of  the  State,"  gives  a  par- 
tial history  of  some  of  the  early  pioneers  of  Wisconsin  from  the 
Seventeenth  to  the  Nineteenth  Century.  But  they  were  not  settlers 
in  the  proper  sense  of  the  term.  They  were  exploring  adventurers 
and  agents  and  employees  of  various  fur  companies  of  Canada  and 
the  United  States  and  were  sent  by  them  to  trade  with  the  Indians 
for  furs  and  peltries.  And  they  had  no  desire  or  intention  of  open- 
ing the  country  to  permanent  settlement  or  to  civilization.  In  fact 
it  was  their  intent  and  aim  to  keep  as  far  from  that  as  possible,  be- 
cause the  fewer  the  settlers  the  more  Indians  and  the  more  furs 
and  better  trade  and  larger  profits. 

By  treaty  with  the  Indians  at  Chicago  in  1833  they  ceded  to 
the  government  the  title  to  their  lands  in  the  State,  excepting  some 
reservations  to  which  they  could  retire  and  live  more  closely  and 
sociably  together  and  where  the  Great  Father  at  Washington  could 
look  after  them  and  care  for  them  until  they  became  extinct  or 
nearly  so — as  at  present. 

It  was  not  till  1834  that  lands  were  surveyed  and  opened  to 
settlers,  and  the  first  land  sale  was  at  Mineral  Point  in  1834.  The 
population  of  the  state  was  only  4,795.  and  it  was  scattered  at  a 
few  places,  the  lead  mines  and  trading  posts  along  the  rivers  and 
at  Green  Bay. 

In  June  1835,  the  first  steamboat  landed  at  Milwaukee  and 
from  that  time  we  may  date  the  first  waves  of  immigration  that 
during  the  succeeding  quarter  of  the  Century  rolled  on  these 
shores.  I  think  it  is  James  Fenimore  Cooper,  who  in  a  couplet  in- 
troductory to  his  novel  of  the  Pioneers  describes  the  situation  at 
that  time  very  well : 

I  bear  the  tread  of  Pioneers, 

A  mighty  Nation  yet  to  be, 
The  fivst  lone  waves  upon  the  Shore, 

Where   soon   shaU  roll   a   human   Sea. 

In  1836  eight  hundred  and  seventy-eight  thousand  acres  of  land 
had  been  sold  to  settlers  and  speculators.  But  the  waves  of  immi- 
gration did  not  assume  large  proportions  till  after  1840.    At  that 


18  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

date  the  population  of  the  State  was  only  31,000.  In  1846  it  was 
155,000,  in  1850  it  was  305,000,  in  1855  it  was  552,000,  and  in 
1860  it  was  776,000.  In  the  early  forties  the  advice  of  Horace 
Greeley  to  "Go  West  Yoimg  Man  Go  West"  began  to  be  heeded. 
And  the  tide  of  immigration  to  Wisconsin  increased  from  year  to 
year  till  it  assumed  vast  proportions  and  the  state  was  being  set- 
tled rapidly  with  an  enterprising  and  industrious  population.  I 
speak  first  of  the  foreign  immigration.  From  what  countries  did 
it  come  and  who  and  what  were  they  as  a  class  ?  They  came  from 
the  best  and  most  intelligent  nations  of  Europe.  Probably  the  great- 
est number  were  those  speaking  the  German  language.  Germans, 
Austrians,  Bohemians,  Hungarians,  Belgians  and  Hollanders. 
Scandinavians  from  Denmark,  Sweden  and  Norway,  English, 
Scotch  and  Irish  from  the  British  Isles.  Some  from  Switzerland 
and  France.    And  a  few  from  some  countries  not  mentioned. 

In  most  of  those  nations  education  of  the  masses  is  general  and 
very  few  of  the  immigrants  were  without  some  education  in  their 
own  language. 

There  were  few  old  people.  They  were  from  middle  age  to 
younger,  married  and  single,  young  men  and  maidens  and  children. 
They  were  intelligent,  enterprising  and  industrious.  None  were 
paupers  or  tramps.  They  intended  to  better  their  fortunes  in 
Wisconsin  by  honest  industry.  They  were  of  all  trades  and  pro- 
ficient farmers,  mechanics,  lawyers,  teachers  and  preachers,  mer- 
chants and  sailors.  No  better  class  ever  settled  a  new  state.  Webster 
says  that  an  immigrant  is  one  who  moves  from  one  country  to  an- 
other or  from  one  state  to  another  in  the  same  country.  I  call  the 
latter  domestic  immigration.  There  was  a  great  tide  of  immigra- 
tion from  the  Eastern  states  durrog  those  years.  They  came  largely 
from  New  England  and  the  empire  state,  some  from  Pennsylvania 
and  from  Canada.  They  were  from  the  best  families  and  blood  of 
those  states,  descendants  of  pilgrims  and  Revolutionary  ancestors. 
They  came  west  for  room  to  expand  and  grow  up  with  the  country. 
It  is  of  no  use  to  tell  you  what  they  did  here.  Their  work  speaks 
for  them. 

There  is  another  class  of  early  settlers  who  were  not  immigrants 
that  came  here  during  those  years.  They  were  very  few  in  num- 
ber at  first,  but  they  increased  to  many  thousands  as  the  years 


EARLY  SETTLERS  19 

rolled  on,  and  I  give  in  illustration  of  the  class  the  early  history  of 
our  friend  Capt.  J.  V.  Quarles,  as  told  by  himself  at  the  banquet  of 
the  Old  Settlers'  Club  in  February,  1896.  As  near  as  I  remember 
he  said  in  part : 

"I  came  here  in  1843.  I  was  a  very  small  boy  and  I  came 
alone.  I  was  a  stranger  and  I  had  no  money,  and  no  clothes  to 
mention,  A  kind  family  took  me  and  cared  for  me.  They  were 
farmers  and  I  helped  on  the  farm.  I  did  some  milking  and  I 
raised  much  provisions — with  a  spoon.  They  were  good  to  me  and 
sent  me  to  school  and  educated  me  to  be  a  lawyer." 

I  hope  that  others  of  his  class  had  a  different  fate.  But  I  don't 
know.    I  do  know  lawyers  are  very  plenty. 

In  1861  when  our  Southern  brethren  attempted  to  destroy  this 
nation  and  commenced  war  against  it,  no  state  responded  more 
quickly  to  the  president's  call  for  troops  than  did  Wisconsin,  and 
no  better  or  braver  men  ever  followed  the  flag  than  Wisconsin 
soldiers.  And  no  state  lost  more  men,  killed,  wounded  and  by  the 
accidents  of  war,  in  proportion  to  their  number  than  Wisconsin. 
Her  soldiers  were  nearly  all  early  settlers  of  native  and  foreign 
birth,  and  their  sons  who  were  old  enough  to  go  to  war.  There  was 
no  difference  in  the  ranks.    All  were  Americans. 

In  illustration  of  the  loyalty  of  foreign  born  citizens  to  the 
country,  I  will  relate  one  instance — and  to  me  it  is  a  sad  memory 
and  the  example  is  not  extreme — there  were  thousands  of  similar 
cases.  When  the  war  commenced  in  1861  I  had  four  brothers, 
native  born  Scotchmen  and  adopted  citizens  of  Wisconsin.  Three 
of  them  enlisted  in  the  early  regiments  and  one  later.  Two  of 
them  returned  when  the  war  ended  and  two  were  killed  in  battle 
and  sleep  where  they  fell  in  unknown  graves  in  Tennessee  and 
Virginia.    Could  any  men  do  more  for  their  country  ? 

It  is  generally  supposed  that  settlers  suffered  many  hardships 
during  early  years,  but  I  doubt  if  they  were  aware  of  them  to  any 
great  extent.  It  is  true  they  worked  hard,  but  they  were  able  and 
willing  to  work  and  did  not  count  it  hardship.  They  had  plenty 
of  good  plain  food  and  did  not  suffer  hunger — good  warm  clothing 
and  did  not  suffer  cold.  They  had  few  luxuries  for  the  table  be- 
cause they  were  not  to  be  had  and  few  fine  clothes  for  the  same  rea- 


20  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

son.  Rut  they  were  contented  with  what  they  could  get  and  did 
not  consider  it  any  hardship.  Many  of  them  came  from  large  cities 
and  densely  populated  districts  where  a  struggle  for  existence  was 
their  only  prospect  in  future.  But  here  they  had  a  feeling  of  free- 
dom and  independence  and  assurance  of  future  welfare  that  was 
new  to  them,  and  more  than  balanced  any  privation  or  hardships 
they  might  encounter.  But  they  suffered  some  privations  incident 
to  a  new  country.  Markets  were  few  and  distant,  roads  were  bad, 
schools  and  churches  were  few  and  often  far  away,  and  in  sickness 
or  accidents,  medical  aid  might  be  hard  to  get.  Farming  tools  and 
machinery  were  crude  but  no  better  were  in  use  anywhere.  The 
strong  arm  of  the  farmer  scattered  the  seeds,  the  scythe  and  grain 
cradle  were  mowers  and  self-binders  and  the  flail  and  old  horse- 
power thresher  prepared  the  grain  for  use. 

To  be  fashionable  did  not  trouble  them  very  much.  Men  were 
fashionable  in  satinet,  jeans  or  hard  times,  ladies  in  alpaca,  de- 
laines or  calicos.  There  were  no  high  hat  laws  and  their  heads  were 
level.  Boys  and  girls  were  not  yet  masters  and  misses,  and  the 
new  woman  was  not  yet  invented.  The  old  woman  was  perfectly 
satisfactory,  and  divorce  courts  were  a  luxury  reserved  for  the 
present  generation.  They  took  their  pleasure  rides  on  the  old 
buckboard  or  spring  wagons  or  by  Foot  and  Walker's  line  in  place 
of  bicycle,  phaeton  or  electric  car. 

Money  was  scarce  and  hard  to  get.  Gold  and  silver  were  at  par, 
but  16  to  1,  they  had  none  of  it.  But  an  order  on  the  store  was 
just  as  good  and  easier  to  get.  In  fact  they  were  not  aware  how 
much  they  were  suffering  and  where  ignorance  is  bliss  'tis  folly  to 
be  wise. 

The  early  settlers  found  Wisconsin  a  wilderness.  They  made 
it  a  cultivated,  beautiful  and  prosperous  state.  They  created  state 
and  local  governments ;  they  enacted  wise,  just  and  liberal  laws ; 
they  founded  public  schools  and  the  higher  institutions  of  learning ; 
they  built  hospitals  and  asylums  for  the  insane  and  other  unfor- 
tunates, churches  for  the  good  and  prisons  for  the  bad.  And  all 
that  has  been  added  in  later  years  is  built  on  the  foundations  laid 
by  them,  and  to  them  belongs  the  credit  of  the  state. 

At  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  in  1865  the  population  of  the 
state  was  about  900,000.    By  immigration  and  natural  increase  it 


EARLY  SETTLERS  21 

has  more  than  doubled  and  also  doubled  in  wealth,  commerce  and 
production.  All  the  early  settlers  now  living  are  indeed  Old  Set- 
tlers, and  a  younger  generation  of  men  must  guide  the  Ship  of 
State. 

May  they  be  as  wise,  prudent  and  honest  as  their  Fathers  were, 
and  guide  her  in  the  safe  channel  of  equal  rights  and  justice  to  all, 
and  all  will  be  well  with  the  State. 


In  the  'Thirties 

Paper  read  by  C.  H.  White  at  Old  Settlers'  Picnic,  Aug.  18,  1898. 

You  may  be  unable  to  reconcile  my  age  which  is  twenty-seven 
with  these  reminiscences  of  the  early  days,  still  I  was  quite  a  chunk 
of  a  boy  when  I  came  to  Wisconsin  in  1836  during  John  I.  Kockwell 
and  S.  V.  R.  Ableman's  terms  of  office  as  United  States  Marshal, 
for  I  was  deputy  under  each  of  these  officers  during  the  exciting 
trial  of  Sherman  M.  Booth.  I  had  charge  of  the  jury,  and  I  think 
Booth  and  myself  are  the  only  parties  living  who  figured  in  that 
trial. 

My  father,  Peter  White,  Sr.,  emigrated  from  Rome,  New  York, 
in  May  1835  to  Green  Bay,  Wisconsin.  He  established  a  store  and 
returned  in  the  fall  to  spend  the  winter  in  Rome.  The  following 
May  he  set  sail  again  with  his  oldest  son — your  humble  servant. 

That  year  the  ice  proved  very  severe  on  boats  bound  for  the 
upper  lakes.  We  lay  in  sight  of  Buffalo  two  weeks,  not  able  to 
move,  on  account  of  being  locked  in  fields  of  ice,  extending  as  far 
as  the  eye  could  see. 

The  middle  of  June  on  Sunday  morning,  we  anchored  at  the 
point  where  now  lies  the  City  of  Green  Bay — being  the  first  boat  of 
the  season,  every  inhabitant  that  was  in  sight  of  the  Bay  or  in 
hearing  of  church  bells  was  on  the  dock  to  receive  us. 

The  Indians  outnumbered  the  whites  by  hundreds.  My  first 
visit  to  Milwaukee  was  in  the  summer  of  1838.  I  drove  a  team 
and  took  Andrew  J.  Vieau  and  family  from  Green  Bay  to  Mil- 
waukee. Vieau  was  a  brother-in-law  of  Solomon  Juneau — who 
lived  in  a  log  house  situated  about  where  the  Marine  Bank  now 
stands.  All  I  can  recall  of  Vieau's  family  is  that  he  had  a  lumber 
wagon  full  of  children ! 

One  year  later  I  visited  Milwaukee  and  took  refuge  in  the  Cot- 
tage Inn — kept  by  R.  P.  Harrison  and  George  Vail,  it  was  located 
on  East  Water  street.  On  this  occasion  I  took  a  load  of  fresh  white- 
fish  for  speculation.  Left  the  Bay  with  a  whole  ton  of  fresh  shining 
fish,  a  brand  new  sleigh,  a  span  of  good  horses  and  plenty  of  cour- 
age. 


IN  THE  'THIRTIES  23 

The  snow  gradually  melted  from  day  to  day  until  I  reached 
Summit.  There  I  ran  into  a  rain  storm,  I  was  obliged  to  hire  a 
wagon  of  a  brother  of  H.  N.  Wells,  who  at  that  time  was  one  of 
Milwaukee's  noted  lawyers.  After  a  drag  of  30  miles  from  Sum- 
mit to  Milwaukee  through  the  rain  and  mud,  I  made  a  desperate 
effort  to  sell  my  fish ;  frozen  and  thawed  fish  do  not  present  a  very 
inviting  or  appetizing  appearance. 

After  driving  from  house  to  house  for  three  hours,  and  making 
but  one  sale,  I  became  thoroughly  convinced  it  was  only  "fisher- 
man's luck,"  and  in  desperation  I  drove  down  to  the  river,  cut  a 
hole  in  the  ice  and  dumped  the  load,  then  started  on  my  return 
trip.  Paid  Mr.  Wells  10  dollars  for  the  use  of  his  wagon,  left  my 
new  sleigh  and  double  harness  in  his  care,  rented  a  dilapidated 
saddle  and  started  for  Green  Bay — with  the  firm  resolve  that  if 
Milwaukee  folks  wanted  fish  they  would,  as  far  as  I  was  concerned, 
be  obliged  to  come  to  Green  Bay  for  them.  When  I  reached  homo 
I  found  it  necessary  to  employ  a  veterinary  surgeon  to  cure  the 
damage  the  old  saddle  was  accountable  for.  The  surgeon  charged 
me  $15.  The  horse  died  within  two  weeks.  The  sleigh  and  harness 
have  never  been  heard  from  to  this  day. 

Ton   of  fish $  60.00 

Sleigh  $30.00,  harness,  $25.00 55.00 

Use  of  wagon 10.00 

Surgeon 15.00 

Dead  horse  125.00 

Expenses  on  road 30.00 


$295.00 

All  for  the  fun  of  lugging  dead  fish  to  this,  then,  benighted  town. 

My  next  visit  to  Milwaukee  was  when  the  Hotel,  called  Mil- 
waukee House,  stood  on  the  summit  of  the  city.  I  was  sent  by  an 
uncle,  who  was  a  farmer,  a  hotel  keeper  and  preacher.  He  lived 
on  the  edge  of  Calumet  Prairie,  12  miles  north  of  Fond  du  Lac. 
He  was  an  extensive  breeder  of  hogs  and  sent  me  with  one  of  his 
sons  to  purchase  a  drove.  He  had  a  breed  that  was  called  Caseknife 
or  Razorback.  They  would  devour  their  weight  in  grain  daily  and 
not  increase  in  weight.  They  would  jump  a  six  rail  fence  or  lie 
down  and  squeeze  between  the  rail,  a  space  of  about  three  inches. 


24  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

For  some  reason  we  started  home  without  purchasing  the  drove. 
Some  man  who  was  a  guest  of  the  Milwaukee  House  at  that  time, 
advised  us  to  try  the  Indian  trail  leading  to  Fond  du  Lac,  he  said 
we  would  save  fifty  miles  that  way.  We  started,  sixteen  miles  out 
of  the  city  we  passed  the  last  house,  we  rode  until  night  overtook 
us  and  concluded  to  camp;  we  were  without  food  for  our  horses 
or  ourselves ;  we  gathered  brush  for  the  horses  and  sat  by  a  fire  until 
daylight.  During  the  night  we  were  sure  we  saw  and  heard  at  least 
a  thousand  wolves.  It  was  in  October,  the  leaves  had  filled  the  trail 
BO  it  was  difficult  to  trace  it,  when  the  morning  came,  the  trail 
was  utterly  obliterated.  To  make  the  story  short,  the  night  of  the 
3rd  day,  we  found  ourselves  back  al  the  sixteen  mile  house  out  of 
Milwaukee,  nearly  famished;  during  the  time  we  were  lost,  if  it 
had  been  possible  to  have  gotten  our  clutches  on  one  of  those  wolves, 
we  felt  equal  to  devouring  it. 

We  concluded  that  the  "furtherest  way  round  was  the  nearest 
way  home,"  and  went  via  Watertown. 

I  took  the  contract  for  carrying  the  mail  between  Milwaukee 
and  Green  Bay  that  was  carried  otherwise  than  on  a  man's  back  in 
a  mud  wagon.  I  was  allowed  six  days  for  making  the  trip.  At 
that  time  postage  on  one  letter  was  25  cents.  The  trip  is  made  in 
as  many  hours  now. 


Pioneer  Land  Speculation 
in  Milwaukee 

Paper  by  Silas  Chapman,  Eead   Before  the   Old  Settlers'  Club, 

Dec.  5,  1893. 

For  some  time  previous  to  the  year  1836,  money,  or  what  is 
sometimes  called  money,  the  bills  of  banks  of  issue,  was  very 
abundant.  Speculation  ran  rampant,  prices  of  everything  went 
upward,  and  this  speculation  culminated  in  1836  by  platting  and 
throwing  on  the  market  lots,  not  only  in  cities  and  villages,  but 
on  mountain  tops  and  under  water.  It  mattered  not  where  the 
real  estate  was,  it  became  real  to  the  speculator,  and  his  credit,  if 
not  his  money,  was  invested  in  it.  It  was  supposed  to  be  a  fact  that 
lots  were  platted  and  sold  that  were  then,  and  are  to  this  day  under 
water.  It  was  nearly  true  of  lots  in  Milwaukee.  As  a  take  off  it 
was  gravely  announced  one  morning  in  a  New  York  paper  that 
two  paupers  had  escaped  from  a  county  asylum,  and  before  they 
could  be  recaptured,  each  had  made  $40,000  by  speculating  in  lots. 

The  land  where  our  city  now  is  had  just  been  surveyed,  and 
was  an  enticing  field  for  speculation.  The  place  was  outside  of 
civilization  and  only  reached  by  tramp  boats  on  the  lake.  The  land 
was  platted,  the  plats  booked  well  on  the  map,  and  the  maps  were 
ready.  All  the  present  Seventh,  Third  and  Fifth  and  parts  of  the 
Fourth,  Second  and  Sixth  wards  were  platted,  and  ready  for  sale. 
In  all  nearly  5,000  lots  were  in  the  market. 

It  mattered  very  little  to  the  original  settler  or  buyer  where 
the  great  city  of  the  future  was  to  be,  if,  indeed,  he  concerned  him- 
self about  the  future.  Only  the  owners  of  the  south  part  of  the 
Fifth  ward  named  their  plat  "Milwaukee  Proper" — insisting  that 
this  was  the  true  place  for  the  city,  and  some  of  us — uninterested — 
agreed  with  them. 

Then  began  the  furious  and  reckless  sale  of  lots.  Sellers  were 
as  reckless  as  buyers,  for  everybody  was  a  seller,  and  everybody 
was  a  buyer.  There  was  no  limit  to  the  prices  and  expectation  of 
prices.  Lots  were  sold  for  a  given  price  with  a  guarantee  that 
within  a  named  period  they  could  be  sold  at  a  certain  per  cent  ad- 


26  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

vance.  Mr.  Juneau  is  said  to  have  sold  lots  with  such  guarantee, 
and  afterwards,  according  to  his  ability,  honorably  redeemed  his 
pledge.  Stories  have  come  down  to  us,  the  truth  concerning  which 
I  am  glad  I  do  not  know,  that  business  men  would  deny  themselves 
to  their  customers  and  in  their  back  room,  with  their  bottle  of  wine, 
make  themselves  famously  rich  in  trading  in  town  lots.  Having 
seen  the  results  of  such  transactions,  should  some  old  settler  press 
me  hard,  I  should  acknowledge  a  belief  therein. 

We  can  hardly  realize  it  to  be  true,  that  while  these  lots  were 
sold,  and  warranted  titles  given  no  individual  owned  in  his  own 
right  one  foot  of  ground,  the  title  was  still  vested  in  the  United 
States. 

At  that  time  the  United  States  recognized  no  preemption  claims. 
A  settler  might  squat  on  an  80  acre  tract  or  any  other  number  of 
acres,  build  his  cabin,  and  make  all  his  improvements,  and  yet  if 
he  had  not  actually  paid  for  his  land  in  gold,  any  other  person 
might  pay  for  the  same,  oust  the  settler,  and  seize  the  land  and 
improvements,  without  paying  anything  for  those  improvements. 

On  the  east  side,  Solomon  Juneau  claimed  all  now  the  Seventh 
ward  with  a  narrow  strip  south  of  Wisconsin  street,  Peter  Juneau 
the  rest  of  the  Third  ward,  George  Walker  and  others  certain  frac- 
tional lots  now  the  Fifth  ward  and  Byron  Kilboum  was  the  first 
to  perfect  his  title — ^the  Juneaus  followed  soon  after.  Walker's 
title  was  not  settled  till  1842,  and  then  by  an  act  of  congress,  some 
other  claimant  having  "jumped"  upon  it. 

Late  in  1836  business  circles  throughout  the  country  began  to 
fear  a  financial  panic.  It  could  not  be  averted.  1837  came  in  with 
great  and  extensive  failures.  There  was  crowding  and  rushing  to 
cover.  I  was  then  a  resident  of  New  York  City,  saw  the  swirl  in  that 
center  of  whirlpool  and  the  memory  of  that  excitement  will  not 
leave  me  should  I  live  as  long  as  this  Old  Settlers'  Club,  that  is,  a 
thousand  years.  Land  speculation  came  to  a  sudden  close.  The 
supposed  values  of  real  estate  in  Milwaukee  all  at  once  disappeared. 

Owners  of  lots  in  Milwaukee  were  living  in  eastern  towns  and 
cities.  They  had  given  value  for  that  which  was  of  no  value — 
something  for  nothing.  Land  was  down  nearly  to  its  original  acre 
value — lots  could  not  be  given  away. 


LAND  SPECULATION  27 

A  carpenter  named  Thurston,  doing  business  here  in  1836,  had 
done  some  work  for  and  had  a  claim  against  a  neighbor.  The 
debtor  could  not  pay.  Thurston  obtained  judgment,  the  claim  and 
costs  amounting  to  $175.  The  debtor  having  a  lot,  offered  to  pass 
that  over  to  Thurston  for  satisfaction  of  judgment.  Mr.  Juneau 
was  consulted  but  being  in  the  depths  himself,  could  hardly  give  a 
fair  judgment.  He  told  Thurston  to  let  the  lot  alone — Milwaukee 
had  gone  to  the  dogs  never  to  come  back.  Thurston  did  not  take 
the  lot — nor  anything  else.  The  lot  is  the  one  on  which  the 
old  insurance  building  now  stands.  Some  few  years  ago  I  met 
Thurston  directly  in  front  of  that  building.  We  looked  at  it,  but 
neither  of  us  said  a  word  about  it. 

The  recovery  of  real  estate  value  was  very  slow.  In  1841,  four 
years  after  the  crash,  I  met  a  gentleman  of  Salem,  Mass.,  who  said 
to  me:  "I  have  six  lots  in  Milwaukee,  my  title  is  good,  but  there 
are  some  taxes  still  unpaid.  If  you  will  take  these  lots  off  my 
hands  and  save  me  from  further  anxiety  I  will  give  you  a  quit  claim 
deed."  I  declined  to  relieve  him.  The  lots  are  on  West  Water 
street,  south  of  Grand  avenue. 

One  could  hardly  be  in  an  eastern  city,  without  meeting  owners 
of  Milwaukee  lots.  As  late  as  1850,  thirteen  years  after  the  failures, 
being  in  Philadelphia,  a  capitalist  who  had  held  on  to  his  invest- 
ments, wanted  to  know  if  he  could  get  50  per  cent  of  what  the 
lots  cost  him  in  1836.    "Doubtful."  was  my  reply. 

In  1845  I  purchased  the  northwest  quarter  of  block  133,  First 
ward,  the  block  on  which  was  Juneau's  home — ^now  the  property  of 
John  Black,  for  $300. 

Milwaukee  did  recover  from  the  madness  of  1836.  It  has  since 
kept  its  real  estate  at  a  fair  but  not  speculative  value.  What  the 
condition  is  now  and  will  be  for  the  next  ten  years,  I  leave  to  the 
essavist  who  shall  read  to  this  club  in  1950. 


Boyhood   Memories 

Paper  by  A.  W.  Kellogg  Read  April  3d,  1889. 

I  was  born  in  the  little  hamlet  of  West  Goshen  in  the  some- 
what noted  Litchfield  County,  Connecticut,  which  lies  on  the  rough 
back-bone  of  the  state  between  the  broad  Connecticut  river  valley 
on  the  east  and  the  narrower  Ilousatonic  on  the  west.  Among  my 
early  recollections  is  one  of  going  through  the  orchard  and  across  the 
lot  back  of  my  father's  house  without  once  touching  the  ground; 
not  on  wings  to  be  sure  but  by  stepping  and  jumping  from  stone 
to  stone  the  whole  distance.  And  as  I  was  less  than  seven  years 
old  the  stones  must  have  been  very  thick,  the  fences  already  having 
been  built  of  them.  And  I  recall  the  remark  of  an  old  salt  of  a  sea 
captain  who  said  after  living  in  the  place  for  awhile,  "That  he  had 
sailed  around  the  world  but  had  never  been  so  long  out  of  sight  of 
land  before  V 

But  yet  I  have  ever  kept  a  warm  place  in  my  heart  for  the 
good  old  "land  of  steady  habits,"  which  I  once  put  into  these  simple 
rhymes : 

"Backward,  turn  backward,  oh  time  in  thy  flight, 
"Make  me   a   child   again  jnst   for   to-night." 

In  the  last  days  of  October  1836,  my  Father,  Leverett  S.  Kel- 
logg, with  his  family  left  the  dear  old  state  and  starting  westward, 
traveling  by  the  fastest  conveyances  then  to  be  had  with  one  small 
exception,  was  just  four  weeks  making  the  journey.  Teams  took 
us  and  our  goods  from  Goshen  to  Albany,  N.  Y.,  then  we  took  the 
old  strap  railroad  to  its  end  at  Schenectady,  then  the  canal  packet  to 
Buffalo,  where  we  shipped  our  goods  by  the  last  schooner  for  the 
season  bound  round  the  lakes,  and  ourselves  got  on  board  the  old 
steamer  Columbus  for  Detroit.  There  father  bought  a  team  of 
horses  and  a  lumber  wagon  and  kept  up  with  the  stage  during  the 
daytime  and  only  got  behind  by  not  traveling  nights.  Of  the  inci- 
dents of  that  long  journey  I  recall  two  or  three  distinctly,  viz :  the 
long  climb  of  the  locks  at  I^ockport,  N.  Y.,  and  the  packet  captain's 
cry  of  "Low  bridge"  as  we  swept  under  some  bridge  that  nearly 
touched  the  deck  of  the  packet ;  the  first  venison  steak  ever  tasted, 
at  Tpsilanti,  Mich.,  which,  as  it  was  cooked  that  morning,  was  as 


BOYHOOD  MEMORIES  29 

dry  and  tasteless  as  a  cliip;  of  the  hard  climb  of  the  long  sand 
iiills  as  we  struck  Lake  Michigan  a  little  this  side  of  Niles;  and  of 
one  night's  lodging  with  thirty  or  more  other  travelers  in  a  log 
tavern  of  two  rooms,  each  about  13x14,  where  father,  mother  and 
the  three  children  occupied  the  only  bed  in  the  house,  the  landlord's, 
cut  off  by  a  sheet  in  the  corner  and  given  to  mother  as  the  only 
woman  and  nearly  sick,  while  the  rest  were  lodged  in  bunks  one 
above  another  three  or  four  high  all  around  the  walls,  like  the 
berths  in  a  Canal  packet.  Father  had  thought  some  of  stopping  in 
Chicago,  but  the  ground  was  so  low  and  the  mud  so  deep  that  we 
stopped  only  for  a  night.  And  I  can  see  now,  the  chicken  tracks  in 
the  mud  on  the  kitchen  floor  of  that  old  "Lake  House,"  as  I  have 
since  seen  on  a  wet  day  the  men  tracks  in  the  mud  on  the  thronged 
sidewalks  of  Chicago,  something  less  than  an  inch  deep. 

We  reached  Southport  (now  Kenosha)  about  sundown  November 
26th,  and,  as  the  weather  had  turned  suddenly  cold  that  after- 
noon, were  nearly  frozen  when  two  miles  this  side  we  drove  up 
to  the  log  cabin  of  my  father's  brother  who  had  come  west  the 
year  before.  After  a  day  or  two  Father  came  on  to  Milwaukee,  but 
mother  and  the  three  children  stayed  for  a  month  in  that  one 
room  log-house  with  a  ladder-reached  attic,  in  which  there  was  al- 
ready a  family  of  husband,  wife  and  five  children,  and  the  im- 
pression remaining  in  memory  is  not  that  of  being  so  greatly 
crowded,  but  rather  of  having  had  a  nice  visit. 

Besides  cracking  hickory  and  butter-nuts,  one  of  our  amuse- 
ments was  to  go  down  through  the  trap  door  in  the  floor  into  the 
cellar,  and,  lifting  the  flat  turnips  by  the  roots,  to  judge  by  their 
weight  which  were  solid  and  which  pithy,  to  bring  up  the  sound 
ones  and  scrape  them  with  a  table  knife  in  lieu  of  apples,  and  I 
can  almost  taste  now  the  cool,  juicy  flavor  of  those  soft,  white 
raouthfuls. 

Father  having  found  his  schooner  sent  furniture  which  went 
by  to  Chicago  and  had  to  be  brought  back,  moved  it  into  some 
rooms  over  a  store  on  the  river-bank  on  West  Water  street  opposite 
what  is  now  the  Second  Ward  bank — the  only  vacant  place  he 
could  find — came  for  us  and  the  family  arrived  at  Milwaukee  the 
first  of  January  1837.    Of  that  first  winter  I  recall  this  incident. 


30  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

One  day  I  came  bursting  into  the  sitting-room,  heard  mother's 
**hush"  and  then  saw  on  the  bed  in  the  comer  a  face  almost  as 
white  as  the  pillow  on  which  it  lay  surrounded  by  an  aureole  of 
silver  hair,  aifd  it  seemed  to  me  that  a  saint  had  come  out  from  one 
of  the  pictures  of  the  old  masters  with  the  Halo  about  his  head 
and  gone  to  sleep  there. 

Mother  told  me  he  was  the  presiding  elder,  the  Rev.  John  Clark, 
and  that  he  had  said  after  sitting  a  few  minutes,  "Sister  Kellogg,  I 
have  slept  or  tried  to  sleep  beside  a  log  in  the  woods  for  three  nights 
on  my  way  from  my  last  appointment  at  Green  Bay,  and  your 
feather-bed  looks  so  tempting  I  must  ask  for  the  privilege  of  a  nap 
on  it  even  before  dinner  if  you  please,"  and  the  tired  old  man  slept 
the  restful  sleep  of  the  conscience  free  till  long  after  my  dinner 
was  over  and  I  was  off  to  school.  His  district  then  covered  the  whole 
eastern  half  of  the  state,  but  soon  after  the  old  hero  went  to  Texas, 
where  in  the  scattered  cabins  and  huge  camp  meetings  he  wrought 
a  grand  work  for  the  Master,  until  worn  out  he  at  the  last  came 
back  to  his  old  friends  in  Chicago  where  feeble,  but  triumphant  and 
greatly  beloved,  he  waited  a  few  months  and  then  pitched  his  final 
camp  on  the  heavenly  hills.  That  winter  my  brother  and  I  crossed 
the  river  on  the  ice  every  day  to  attend  Eli  Bates'  school  in  the 
old  Courthouse,  which  stood  on  the  site  of  the  present  one,  and 
was  the  northernmost  limit  of  habitation.  The  river  at  that  point 
was  nearly  or  quite  twice  as  wide  as  now,  there  being  a  bayou  on 
the  east  side  with  a  deep  channel  and  separated  from  the  main  river 
by  a  marshy  point  or  bar  stretching  down  from  Division  street 
covered  with  rushes  and  wild  rice.  The  east  bank  was  steep  and 
high,  except  for  a  depression  near  where  Oneida  street  now  is, 
which  made  it  practicable  for  us  to  climb.  At  the  foot  of  this 
flowed  a  fine  spring  whence  we  used  to  get  our  drinking  water 
across  the  ice  in  winter  and  by  use  of  a  canoe  in  summer.  It  was 
a  general  resort  for  good  water  and  long  afterward  furnished  the 
water  for  the  public  pump  in  Market  Square.  In  this  valley-like 
situation,  close  by  the  bluff  bank,  was  the  one  ball-alley — bowling 
alley  these  politer  days — of  the  town.  And  between  it  and  Wiscon- 
sin street,  where  the  Ferry  landed  us  in  summer,  was  a  very  high 
bluff — a  good  deal  higher  than  the  top  of  the  Kirby  House — which 
was  so  steep  as  to  be  almost  impossible  for  even  boys  to  climb.  Mr. 


BOYHOOD  MEMORIES  31 

Bates,  the  school  teacher,  was  also  keeper  of  the  Lighthouse,  a  round 
brick  tower  which  stood  on  the  bluff  at  the  foot  of  Wisconsin  street, 
which  bluff  was  then  as  high  there  as  at  any  other  point  on  the  lake 
shore.  Mr.  Bates  was  a  tall,  large-framed  man  with  great  dignity 
of  manner,  but  with  one  cork  leg  which  gave  to  his  walk  a  peculiar 
swinging  hitch,  and  I  can  see  now  Gal.  Miller — Judge  Miller's 
oldest  son — with  the  true  American  boy's  want  of  reverence,  fol- 
lowing close  behind  him  into  school  one  day  and  imitating  the 
motion  to  perfection  greatly  to  the  amusement  of  the  crowd.  Mr. 
Bates  was  a  type  of  the  old-fashioned  pedagogue,  dignified,  severe, 
respected,  who  understood  thoroughly  the  branches  he  was  ex- 
pected to  teach,  chiefly  the  old  Yankee's  three  R's. — Reading  Riting 
and  Rithmetic — but  he  lacked  the  enthusiasm  in  his  work  which 
would  inspire  in  his  scholars  the  eager  desire  to  push  into  the  realms 
beyond. 

He  loved  his  pipe  and  a  quiet  game  of  cards  and  his  lighthouse 
home  was  therefore  a  frequent  resort  for  some  of  the  older  boys  and 
young  men,  which  some  parents,  mine  among  them,  were  disposed 
to  warn  against.  He  afterward  lost  his  lighthouse  home,  probably 
with  the  change  of  administration,  in  1840,  gave  up  his  school  and 
went  to  Chicago  as  a  clerk  in  Chas.  Mears'  Lumber  Yard  and  Office. 
After  two  or  three  years  of  faithful  work  at  some  $30  or  $40  a 
month,  a  neighbor  offered  him  an  advance  of  $10  a  month,  and 
when  he  told  Mr.  Mears  about  it  that  gentleman  replied  "I  am 
sorry  to  have  you  go  but  I  can't  afford  to  pay  any  more,  but  I'll  tell 
you  what  I'll  do  I'll  give  you  an  interest  in  the  business  if  you'll 
stay."  And  that  interest  resulted  for  Mr.  Bates  in  a  large  for- 
tune, $30,000  of  which  was  bequeathed  to  erect  the  beautiful  bronze 
statute  of  Abraham  Lincoln  by  St.  Gaudens  which  was  set  up  in 
Lincoln  park  a  year  or  so  ago. 

That  next  summer  we  used  to  make  frequent  parties  of  small 
boys  to  the  tamarack  swamp,  which  stretched  from  Wells  street  to 
Chestnut,  just  under  the  bluff,  to  gather  gum  and  wintergreen.  And 
we  had  to  be  careful  to  keep  on  the  bogs  or  roots  of  trees  to  pre- 
vent from  getting  into  the  water  and  mire.  And  I  remember  that 
just  east  of  the  swamp  our  cow  got  mired  one  afternoon  and  nearly 
died  before  she  was  found,  the  next  day,  and  by  the  help  of  neigh- 
bors, with  planks,  was  lifted  out  of  the  mire  and  sand.    That  re- 


32  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

minds  nie  that  father  kept  two  cows,  each  having  a  different  toned 
bell,  and  we  boys  used  to  have  a  good  deal  of  travel  and  trouble  to 
find  them,  sometimes  among  the  brush  of  Chestnut  street  or  Third 
street  hills,  and  once  when  they  had  strayed  beyond  the  second 
gulley — on  what  is  now  Grand  avenue  at  Thirteenth  street,  they 
were  out  over  night — and  not  found  till  the  next  day,  as  we  could 
not  believe  they  had  gone  so  far  away. 

That  summer  a  fever  smote  my  darling  three  year  old  sister, 
the  pride  and  joy  of  our  home  and  the  sunshine  of  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  after  two  weeks  of  suffering — (it  seemed  almost  as  much 
from  the  medicine  as  from  the  disease) — her  freed  spirit  took 
wing  and  soared  away,  leaving  only  the  smile-crowned  clay  in  the 
desolate  home.  As  there  was  yet  no  regular  cemetery  we  laid  her 
to  rest  under  the  great  oaks  on  the  hillside  beyond  what  was  after- 
ward Cicero  Comstock's  home  on  Galena  street  for  so  long. 

Among  my  earlier  recollections  is  one  of  seeing  father  sweep 
out  the  shavings  from  his  carpenter  shop  Saturday  nights  and 
putting  boards  on  nail  kegs  across  the  room,  preparing  it  for  the 
Methodist  services  for  Sunday.  That  shop  stood  on  posts  set  in 
the  water  on  the  southeast  corner  of  East  Water  and  Huron  streets, 
and  was  reached  by  a  plank  from  the  sidewalk.  From  that  point 
down  to  the  ferry  for  Walker's  Point  ran  a  narrow  roadway,  and  I 
have  skated  over  the  whole  marsh  from  that  point  south  to  the 
river  and  east  to  the  lake,  though  the  marsh  was  generally  too 
thickly  covered  with  rushes  and  rice  for  skating.  But  sometimes 
a  storm  would  drive  the  water  in  from  the  lake  and  cover  it,  which 
afterwards  freezing,  would  make  glare  ice  for  the  boys.  That  shop 
was  afterwards  converted  into  a  school  house  for  week  days  and  a 
Methodist  meeting  house  for  Sundays,  their  first  regular  meeting 
place; 

In  the  fall  of  1837  the  great  panic  swept  like  a  prairie  fire  over 
the  whole  country  and  was  specially  severe  in  the  new  settlements 
of  the  west,  bankrupting  nearly  the  whole  community.  All  the 
money  in  circulation  was  of  the  wildcat  or  reddog  variety  and 
became  entirely  worthless. 

My  father  had  contracts  for  several  stores  and  other  buildings 
nearly  completed,  on  which  he  had  paid  out  all  his  own  means  and 
gone  into  debt  besides  for  labor  and  materials  and,  in  the  general 


BOYHOOD  MEMORIES  33 

ruin,  he  was  left  largely  involved.  Too  conscientious  to  take  the 
benefit  of  the  bankrupt  law  which  Congress  hastened  to  pass  to 
relieve  the  general  distress,  he  struggled  on  in  debt  for  years,  often 
praying  that  God  would  let  him  live  long  enough  to  see  the  last 
debt  paid ;  which  prayer  was  granted,  he  having  taken  up  the  last 
note — (for  a  debt  which  by  the  neglect  of  his  lawyer  he  felt  that 
he  had  had  to  pay  twice) — the  summer  before  he  died  in  1854. 

One  man  for  whom  he  built  a  store  and  house  on  East  Water 
street,  though  able,  refused  to  pay,  and  when  suit  was  brought 
pleaded  the  "baby  act,"  proving  that  he  was  imder  age  and  so  es- 
caped payment. 

The  winter  of  1837  and  8  was  known  as  the  hard  winter  all 
through  this  section,  when  many  families  considered  themselves 
fortunate  in  getting  enough  potatoes  and  salt  to  maintain  life,  and 
this  was  the  chief  food  for  the  community. 

Our  family  was  more  fortunate  in  having  a  merchant  friend, 
Mr.  Vinton,  who  had  two  dry  goods  boxes,  the  one  filled  with  buck- 
wheat and  the  other  with  shelled  com,  to  which  he  allowed  us  two 
brothers  access.  And  taking  a  hand  sled  and  a  tin  pail,  we  would 
bring  home  a  large  pail  of  buckwheat,  grind  it  in  a  coffee  mill,  sift 
in  a  hand  sieve  and  make  pancakes,  varied  with  corn  treated  in 
the  same  way,  and  made  into  "johnny  cake."  And  father  having 
secured  a  firkin  of  butter  in  the  fall,  we  were  regarded  the  specially 
favored  family  as  living  like  fighting  cocks.  It  was  that  same 
winter  that  father,  one  bitter  cold  day,  put  a  dry  goods  box  on  a 
hand  sled  and  went  after  some  potatoes  on  the  ice,  away  up  the 
Menomonee  river,  somewhere.  Perhaps  he  got  more  than  he  ex- 
pected, at  any  rate,  overtaken  by  a  driving  snow  storm  on  the  way 
home,  his  sled  stuck  fast  and  he  was  obliged  to  leave  it  and  come 
home  for  help.  Not  daring  to  leave  it  till  morning  for  fear  of  them 
freezing,  tired  as  he  was,  he  took  a  lantern  and  the  two  boys  and 
went  back  and,  after  a  great  effort,  succeeded  in  getting  the  box 
of  potatoes  home  about  midnight  before  a  bitter  cold  morning.  The 
same  winter  a  farmer  from  near  Southport  brought  in  some  freshly 
made  butter,  in  which  luxury  Byron  Kilbourn  indulged  himself  at 
the  cost  of  75  cents  a  pound,  an  imheard  of  price  in  those  days. 
'Twas  either  this  or  the  next  winter  that  we  brothers  went  to  school 
in  Kilboumtown,  just  north  of  Chestnut  street,  on  Third,  taught 


34  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

by  a  man  named  West.  The  older  boys  annoyed  him  greatly  by 
going  skating  and  coming  in  late  after  recess.  He  had  forbidden 
it  and  threatened  punishment.  Bill  Smith,  a  youth  of  18  or  19, 
and  much  larger  than  the  master,  persisted  in  disobedience  and 
having  come  in  late  one  afternoon  the  master  waited  till  nearly 
time  for  school  to  close  and  then  called  Bill  up  and  told  him  to 
take  off  his  coat.  He  reluctantly  obeyed,  but  when  the  master 
took  a  rawhide  from  his  desk  Bill  caught  up  a  big  iron  fire  shovel 
by  the  stove  and  defied  him.  The  teacher  took  a  long  hickory  club 
from  his  desk  which  was  so  much  handier  a  weapon  that  Bill  offered 
to  put  down  the  shovel  if  he  would  put  away  the  club.  But  as  the 
teacher  struck  him  with  the  rawhide.  Bill  clinched  him,  and  they 
had  a  fearful  tussle,  rolling  over  and  over  on  the  floor  amid  blows 
and  kicks  and  bites,  during  which  the  teacher  had  two  of  his  front 
teeth  knocked  out.  But  at  the  last  the  teacher  came  out  on  top, 
and  then  reaching  for  his  rawhide,  stood  up  and  as  Bill  lay  on  his 
back  on  the  floor  (turning  up  his  feet  and  turning  round  as  the 
master  walked  roimd  him)  gave  him  a  most  severe  lashing.  One 
of  his  blows  was  so  hard  as  to  cut  Bill's  cotton  shirt-sleeve  nearly 
the  whole  way  round  his  arm  as  clean  as  though  cut  with  scissors. 
But  Bill  was  subdued,  promised  to  keep  the  rules  and  from  that 
time  there  was  no  more  trouble  from  that  kind  of  disobedience.  In 
the  spring  Mr.  West  gave  up  the  school  and  we  went  back  to  the 
East  Side  for  education.  Mr.  West  now  lives  at  Appleton,  where 
he  owns  a  nice  property  on  the  south  side  of  the  river.  Bill  went 
to  the  pineries  and  I  lost  sight  of  him. 

When  we  first  came  to  Milwaukee  the  high-toned  hotel  of  the 
town  was  the  American  House,  which  covered  nearly  the  whole  tri- 
angular block  where  the  Second  Ward  bank  stands  (not  to  be  con- 
founded with  the  other  American  once  owned  by  J.  L.  Bean  and 
afterwards  kept  so  long  by  the  Kanes,  and  which  stood  on  part  of 
the  Plankinton  House  site).  This  old  American  had  for  its  rival 
Vail's  Cottage  Inn  next  to  Juneau's  house  on  East  Water  street, 
about  the  middle  of  the  Mitchell  Bank  block.  Both  were  eclipsed 
later  by  the  Milwaukee  house,  which  stood  on  the  hill,  which  was 
much  higher  than  now,  and  somewhat  back  from  the  street  where 
the  Library  block  stands  next  the  postoffice. 

But  to  come  back  to  the  old  American.    The  panic  knocked  the 


BOYHOOD  MEMORIES  36 

life  out  of  it,  perhaps  because  it  was  too  far  from  business  and  it 
stood  empty  for  a  long  time,  except  as  some  few  of  its  rooms  were 
rented  to  families  for  housekeeping.  I  remember  a  family  of  Gra- 
hams from  auld  Scotia  once  occupied  the  north  end  which  had  been 
the  kitchen,  and  as  we  then  lived  opposite  on  Third  street,  I  had 
to  pass  it  several  times  a  day  on  the  way  to  school  or  town.  And  it 
impresses  me  now  that  I  never  passed  it  morning,  noon  or  night 
without  hearing  old  man  Graham's  fiddle.  He  played  well,  but 
never  anything  but  sacred  music — psalm  tunes,  the  boys  called 
them — and  though  the  young  bloods  tried  to  get  him  to  play  for 
their  dances,  which  were  much  more  common  then  than  now,  he 
resolutely  refused. 

Among  the  several  boys  and  girls  in  the  lean  old  fellow's  family 
I  most  distinctly  recall  a  big  strapping  young  man  named  Joe,  from 
this  simple  incident.  One  Saturday  afternoon — for  school  kept  a 
half  day  Saturday  then — a  lot  of  us  boys  were  having  a  grand 
game  of  pom-pom-pullaway  on  skates  on  the  marsh  which  began  at 
Spring  street  and  the  river,  reached  back  to  Third  and  Fourth 
streets,  and  stretched  away  down  past  the  Menomonee  to  the  high 
ground  on  Walker's  Point.  I  was  chasing  Joe  and  pressing  him 
hard  when  he  turned  for  the  river,  but  to  reach  it  he  had  to  cross 
a  sort  of  higher  ridge  in  the  marsh  on  which  was  an  upper  layer  of 
ice  from  beneath  which  the  water  had  sunk  away,  and  as  he  struck 
that  he  broke  through  and  fell  flat  on  his  face  and  I  tumbled  on  top 
of  him,  protected  by  his  huge  frame  from  the  shallow  water  below 
in  which  he  was  about  half  submerged.  He  had  to  leave  the  game 
and  go  home  for  some  dry  clothes,  while  I  got  off  with  the  wetting 
of  only  one  arm  to  the  elbow. 

With  one  more  suggestion  I  will  close.  I  am  often  asked  ''how 
it  is  possible  that  coming  here  at  so  early  a  day  your  father  did  not 
get  hold  of  some  real  estate  the  rise  of  which  would  have  made  you 
a  fortime."  There  are  many  answers  and  among  them  these :  When 
Juneau  moved  his  home  from  the  Mitchell  bank  corner — where  we 
boys  often  had  great  sport  watching  and  teasing  two  tame  bears 
that  he  kept  in  his  front  yard — to  the  comer  now  occupied  by 
Mayor  Black's  residence,  he  was  anxious  to  have  our  family  for 
neighbors  as  mother  and  Mrs.  Juneau  had  become  good  friends; 
and  he  offered  to  sell  father  either  one  or  two  lots — I  am  not  sure 


36  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

which — on  the  opposite  corner  for  $50  and  let  him  take  his  own 
time  for  payment.  But  mother,  after  going  up  to  look  at  the  place, 
concluded  that  it  was  so  far  up  in  the  woods,  out  of  the  way,  that 
she  wouldn't  take  the  lots  for  a  gift  and  be  compelled  to  live  on 
them.  Another  answer  is,  that  hampered  by  the  debts  resulting 
from  the  panic,  he  was  like  the  man  in  Chicago  a  few  years  ago, 
who  was  telling  a  friend  that  he  was  once  offered  the  lot  where  the 
Sherman  house  stands  in  exchange  for  a  pair  of  boots. 

'*Why  in  thunder  didn't  you  take  it  ?"  asked  the  friend. 

"I  didn't  have  the  boots,"  was  the  answer. 

A  third  answer  is  that  when  he  died  in  1854,  father  did  have  the 
title  to  eighty  acres  of  land  in  what  is  now  the  northwestern  part  of 
the  city,  on  which  he  had  made  a  small  payment  and  on  which  he 
had  carefully  estimated  there  stood  white  oak  piles  enough  to  pay 
for  the  land  at  the  agreed  price,  but  his  premature  death  prevented 
completion  of  the  contract.  That  eighty  acres  is  worth  $2,000  to 
$3,000  an  acre  now. 

But  the  fourth  answer  is  that  he  chose  to  spend  quite  a  sum  for 
those  times  of  his  hard-earned  savings  to  send  his  two  boys  away  to 
Eock  River  seminary  at  Mt.  Morris,  Illinois,  for  two  years.  And 
I  have  often  thanked  him  in  my  heart  for  that  choice  of  investment, 
for  the  stimulus  and  help  of  those  school  years  in  enabling  me  to 
get  a  broader  outlook  on  life,  a  deeper  and  wider  sympathy  with 
my  brothers  of  the  human  race,  both  of  the  past  and  present  gener- 
ations; a  higher  appreciation  of  the  possibilities  of  manhood,  a 
fuller  knowledge  of  the  thoughts  of  God  as  revealed  in  His  wondrous 
universe,  in  short,  to  get  a  larger,  richer,  higher  life,  have  brought 
me  more  real  treasure  than  could  possibly  have  come  from  the  same 
investment  even  in  Milwaukee  real  estate. 

I  have  often  been  thrilled  with  the  reply  of  an  old  Vermont 
farmer  to  the  question  of  a  traveler  from  the  west. 

''What  on  earth  can  you  raise  here  among  the  hills  and  rocks, 
where  even  the  sheep's  noses  have  to  be  sharpened  to  keep  them 
from  starving  among  the  stones  ?" 

Straightening  himself  up  and  looking  the  stranger-questioner 


BOYHOOD  MEMORIES  37 

full  in  the  face,  he  thundered  out :  "We  build  schoolhouses  and  raise 
men." 

And  I  concur  with  President  Andrew  D.  White  in  the  belief  that 
one  of  the  great  dangers  to  our  American  nation.  If  not  indeed  to 
our  modem  civilization,  is  what  he  calls  the  mercantilism  of  the 
age.  That  is  the  narrowing  and  soul-destroying  disposition  to 
measure  everything  by  its  mere  financial  value,  instead  of  asking 
what  will  it  add  to  manhood,  or  what  will  it  bring  to  the  real  and 
eternal  treasure  of  grand  character? 


Girlhood  Memories 

Read  by  Mrs.  Martha  D.  Ellsworth,  Nov.  7,  1898. 

Connecticut,   dear  native   state,   thy  name 

Pronounced  in  western  ears  calls  up   such   shams 

As  wooden  nutmegs  fresh,  or  basswood  hams, 

Or  hick'ry  oats,   or  some   such  Yankee   game. 

Who  thus  connect  I  cut,   and  fearless  claim 

'Tis  only  thus  because  she  waiting  stands 

With   Yankee  genius  guiding  deftest  hands 

Prepared  to  furnish  what  the  world  demands. 

From  pins  and  buttons,  pegs,   and  tacks  and  matches. 

Or  hats  and  rifles,  pistols,  clocks  and  watches. 

To  peddlers,  poets,  pedagogues  and  preachers. 

To  match  the  world,  we  need  but  name  the  Beechers. 

It  is  only  from  the  standpoint  of  a  child  that  I  may  address 
you  tonight,  dear  friends,  for  it  was  not  my  good  fortune  to  remain 
a  sojourner  in  the  city  which  today  is  noted  for  the  beauty  of  its 
location,  its  genial  home  atmosphere,  and  the  health  and  enterprise 
of  its  people.  These  added  its  large-hearted  hospitality  form  at- 
tractions within  its  gates  that  can  nowhere  be  outrivaled;  nay,  not 
even  in  Paris,  where,  it  is  said,  cordiality  abounds  more  unques- 
tionably than  in  any  other  cwner  of  the  round  globe.  Had  this  con- 
dition been  contrariwise,  I  should  never  have  presumed  to  appear 
in  the  ranks  of  the  "Old  Settlers'  Club"  of  Milwaukee  County,  for 
which  privilege  I  now  publicly  extend  thanks  to  each  and  every 
member  thereof. 

Although  my  initial  wail  disturbed  not  the  waves  of  Milwaukee 
air,  I  am  sure  that  my  four-year-old  cry  of  home-sickness  upon  my 
first  night  in  the  new  Eldorado  must  have,  literally,  made  the 
rafters  ring,  for  the  shelter  in  which  we  pioneers  were  lodged, 
boasted  neither  lath  nor  plaster.  Although  so  small  a  morsel  of 
humanity  as  was  I  upon  my  advent  into  the  far  country,  I  dis- 
tinctly remember  many  incidents  in  connection  therewith.  Most 
delightful  of  all  was  the  trip  hither  in  a  comfortable  steamer,  whose 
crude  motor  power  heaved  and  sighed  in  tones  so  sonorous  that 
there  was  need  of  neither  whistle  nor  bell  to  warn  landings  of  her 
approach.  Doubtless,  there  be  steamers  of  finer  construction  and 
finish  than  the  one  of  my  infant  trip,  but  doubtless  I  have  never 
seen  them.  In  my  recollections,  never  has  there  been  a  boat  so 
grand,  deck  so  enjoyable,  nursery  so  cozy,  colored  mammy  so  tender, 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  39 


chandeliers  so  dazzling,  hoe-cake  so  delicious,  sailors  so  kind- 


What  would  I  not  now  give  to  appreciate  the  good  things  of  this 
earth  as  did  I  my  first  trip  o'er  the  blue  waves  of  Erie,  Huron  and 
Michigan. 

Yet  the  impress  of  such  recent  delights  could  not  keep  home- 
sickness from  the  heart  of  a  weary  little  girl  who  had  nightly  been 
comfortably  tucked  into  a  cozy  bed  surrounded  by  familiar  objects. 
Now  here  she  was — her  first  night  in  Milwaukee,  lodged  upon  the 
hard  floor  of  an  unfinished  hostelry  whose  space  was  covered  by 
the  recumbent  forms  of  fellow-pioneers.  Several  times  during  the 
night  was  Polly  as  she,  little  girl,  shall  herein  be  known,  disturbed 
by  awkward  feet  picking  their  way  over  the  sleepers  to  some  remote 
unoccupied  floor  space  beyond.  Often  since  that  eventful  night 
have  I  heard  mention  of  the  "soft"  side  of  a  plank;  but  I  am  sure 
that  none  of  the  planks  in  this  especial  tavern  were  of  such  order. 
Fortunately,  some  of  the  mothers  of  the  numerous  broods  secured 
accommodations  upon  cots  or  straw-ticks,  but  the  men-folk  and 
children  were  strewn  about  the  floor  with  coats  rolled  up  for  pillows. 

However  crude  the  accommodations,  it  was  not  long  before  a 
nasal  orchestra  made  the  air  musical  with  annotated  snores,  varied 
by  drowsy  or  exceedingly  wide-awake  cries  of  children,  lowing  of 
cattle,  barking  of  dogs,  or  what,  to  the  little  ones,  was  a  blood- 
curdler :  the  entrancing  notes  of  a  screech-owl,  that  had  chosen  this 
especial  ridge-pole  for  his  nightly  serenade.  Never  before  had  Polly 
heard  this  sweet  songster,  and  most  energetically  did  she  manifest 
her  disapproval  of  such  entertainment.  But  nature's  sweet  restorer 
which  nightly  knits  up  the  raveled  sleeve  of  care,  came  to  her  aid 
through  the  merry  blinking  of  the  stars,  that  in  their  passage  across 
the  heavens  sent  loving  rays  through  the  chinks  in  the  roof,  and 
seemed  to  breathe  good-night  benedictions  upon  the  weary,  home-^ 
sick  little  traveler.  Yet,  whether  we  have  joy  or  pain,  fortune  or 
misfortune,  this  stern  old  earth  rolls  on  bringing  daylight  to  those 
who  would  sit  in  darkness,  and  darkness  to  those  who  worship  the 
sun. 

The  little  girl  of  whom  I  write  may  be  reckoned  in  the  latter 
class,  for  certes,  no  Aztec  of  ancient  times  could  have  welcomed  the 
approach  of  Phoebus'  chariot  more  devotedly  than  did  Polly  upon 


40  EAELY  MIL\\^AUKEE 

her  first  awakening  in  the  new  country.  Scarcely  had  the  eastern 
sky  flushed  with  roseate  hue,  ere  the  whole  body  of  sleepers  were 
upon  their  feet  ready  to  plunge  into  the  healthful  air  bath  of  a 
bright  June  morning.  Pater  familias  with  Polly  in  hand  reveled 
in  the  delightful  sensation  of  new  sky,  new  earth,  new  faces  and 
exceedingly  new  houses ;  not  so  Polly.  Her  world  was  slightly  out 
of  gear,  and  she  was  not  yet  mature  enough  to  realize  that  it  was 
due  to  the  absence  of  home  comforts  and  the  sweet  companionship 
of  a  dear  old  grandpa  left  in  the  home  country.  Happily,  the 
troubles  of  childhood  vanish  like  the  morning  dew.  After  the  crude, 
substantial  breakfast,  Polly  was  herself  again,  ready  for  any  ad- 
venture that  life  in  the  wilderness  might  offer.  Mater  familias  with 
heart  sorely  tried  over  comforts  no  longer  in  possession,  was  glad  to 
accept  the  hospitality  of  a  friend,  until  time  when  she  might  possess 
shelter  of  her  own.  Nightfall,  therefore,  found  her  and  her  little 
ones  domiciled  with  a  Kilbourntown  family,  the  members  of  which 
afterwards  became  prominent  residents  of  Berlin,  Wisconsin. 

And  now  came  the  distressful  period  of  stowing  away  a  family 
of  eight  persons  into  space  destined  for  but  one  or  two  at  the  most. 
Fortunately,  this  condition  was  to  exist  only  through  a  period  of 
housebuilding,  and,  in  the  40's,  neither  architect  nor  plumber  hin- 
dered progress.  Provided  with  material — somewhat  in  the  rough, 
I  confess — amateur  carpenters  could  in  short  time  construct  a  very 
comfortable  house  for  the  decades  30  and  40. 

During  the  SO's  began  the  I'm-going-to-have-a-better-house- 
than-you  period — the  period  which  aroused  a  spirit  of  envy,  hatred 
and  malice  in  the  bosoms  of  less  fortunate  dwellers  by  the  lake,  that 
in  a  measure  destroyed  that  purely  enjoyable  feeling  of  comrade- 
ship which  exists  among  a  people  who  together  have  blazed  the 
path  to  civilization. 

Polly's  new  home  lay  upon  an  upper  floor  of  a  store  building  on 
East  Water  stret,  near  the  Cottage  Inn ;  and  with  neighbors,  remem- 
bered, three:  of  which  one  family  is  in  prosperous  circumstances 
near  Oshkosh,  another,  root  and  branch,  has  entirely  disappeared 
from  the  earth.  The  third  has  also  gone  the  way  of  all  flesh.  The 
only  child  of  this  delightful  couple  (whose  bones  repose  in  Forest 
Home)  awaits  in  an  ocean's  bed  the  final  reveille.    During  the  Civil 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  •    41 

War,  with  many  another  brave  boy  in  blue,  he  gave  up  his  life  for 
his  country's  cause.  At  the  final  roll-call,  God  grant  them  all  med- 
als of  honor. 

Polly's  new  home  lay  upon  the  river's  shore.  Here  would  she 
linger  an  interested  spectator  of  the  ease  and  grace  with  which  the 
red  man  guided  his  bark  canoe;  now  among  the  rushes,  and  anon 
shooting  into  mid-stream  with  the  admirable  nonchalance  of  a 
water  fowl.  Occasionally,  too,  was  she  allowed  to  watch  the  war 
dance  of  these  strange  people,  who  bewitched  her  through  their 
grotesque  costumes  and  contortions.  Then,  as  now,  the  white  man 
and  fire-water  were  the  Indian's  chief  enemies.  Often  would  Polly 
lie  o'  nights  heart  pounding  in  fear  at  sound  of  the  wild  man's 
orgies.  In  no  particular  does  he  so  completely  imitate  his  white 
brother  as  in  his  extravagant  use  of  liquor.  Alike,  its  effect  makes 
a  brute  of  savage  as  of  civilized  man. 

Months  slipped  on,  and  the  fair  village  by  the  river  grew  to  fine 
proportions.  But  in  an  unguarded  moment  an  enemy  swooped  down 
upon  the  unsuspecting  victim  and  with  one  fell  stroke  laid  it  low 
in  ashes.  Never  will  Polly  forget  that  spell  of  fright  and  horror 
cast  about  her  as  she  sat  out  upon  the  cold  sidewalk,  within  the  pro- 
tecting arms  of  a  servant,  and  watched  the  monster  fire  through  its 
work  of  destruction.  Memory's  eye  can  still  see  the  long  line  of 
indefatigable  workers  passing  from  hand  to  hand  the  buckets  of 
water  that  other  toilers  filled  at  the  river's  brink.  Memory's  ear 
can  still  hear  the  roar  and  crackle  of  the  leaping  tongues  of  flame, 
the  shouts  of  command,  the  terror-stricken  cries  of  women  and 
children. 

After  this  terrible  lesson  to  her  citizens,  Milwaukee  was  not 
caught  napping  again.  Cream-white  brick  were  drawn  from  her 
ample  lap  and  built  into  beautiful  structures,  that,  being  seen  by 
the  stranger,  wafted  abroad  the  merits  thereof.  A  fire  brigade, 
though  crudely  equipped,  was  marshaled  into  being,  and  all  pre- 
cautions taken  to  make  the  dread  monster  "fire"  a  good  servant, 
where  erstwhile  it  had  been  a  bad  master. 

From  now  on  the  growth  of  the  town  was  greatly  augmented 
through  the  advertising  this  calamity  had  given  it.    Frills  and  fur- 


42  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

belows  appeared  in  such  profusion  that  the  burg  might  well  have 
exclaimed:     "Am  I  I,  or  am  I  not  I?" 

Shortly  after  the  fire  episode  Polly's  parents  built  a  home  in  the 
residence  portion  of  the  town,  in  the  block  with  Clark  Shepard- 
son's  palatial  home.  Herein  flowers  bloomed  the  year  round,  and 
a  little  child  whose  soul  longed  for  the  bright  and  beautiful  things 
of  earth  was  oft  made  happy  through  the  kind  thoughtfulness  of 
the  dear  lady  of  the  manor. 

A  few  years  ago  grown-up  Polly  called  upon  this  then  vener- 
able lady,  who  was  living  in  solitary  comfort  in  her  South  Side 
home;  and  there  she  found  reproduced,  in  almost  every  detail,  the 
familiar  sitting-room  of  the  East  Side  home.  The  rag  carpet  was 
of  the  same  hue  and  weave  as  that  of  old,  the  tall  black  walnut 
bookcase  was  the  very  same  that  stood  in  the  angle  at  the  right  of 
the  bay-window,  and  here  it  stood  at  exactly  the  same  pose  as  erst. 
Here  was  the  bay  too,  but,  perhaps,  of  more  generous  proportion 
than  the  old,  and  here  were  the  same,  the  very  same  old  plants  with 
the  singing  birds  swinging  above,  at  least,  so  grown-up  Polly 
thought. 

But  this  is  not  the  same  brisk  lady  who  presided  over  the  long 
ago;  no,  this  hostess  has  a  slow  step,  wrinkles  upon  her  face,  and 
whitened  hair.  These  stubborn  facts  bring  the  visitor  back  to  the 
knowledge  that  time  is  fleeting  and  that  she  herself  has  changed 
from  an  adoring  child  to  a  matronly  matter-of-fact  woman.  If  we 
only  might  keep  the  freshness  and  enthusiasm  of  youth  throughout 
our  life's  journey,  what  a  dear  old  world  this  would  be! 

Of  all  dreaded  visitors  in  the  life  of  a  household,  the  one  whose 
impressions  are  most  enduring  to  young  and  old  alike  is  the  reaper 
Death.  Stealthily,  silently  did  he  enter  Polly's  home  and  in  two 
short  days  his  scythe  had  done  its  deadly  work.  A  dear  brother  of 
mature  age  had  been  laid  low,  and  the  atmosphere  of  loss  pervaded 
all  things,  \yithin  doors  were  sad  faces,  subdued  voices,  measured 
footfalls.  A  seamstress  busy  with  sable  garments,  and,  more  de- 
pressing still,  that  long,  long  figure  beneath  the  white  sheet.  Oh, 
what  did  it  all  mean  ?  And  why,  before  the  funeral  guests  arrived, 
were  all  the  pictures  and  mirrors  turned  to  the  wall  ?  Even  Heav- 
en's bright-hued  messengers  were  relegated  to  an  obscure  corner 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  43 

where  their  brightness  might  not  offend  his  majesty — Death.  And 
then  the  doleful  music,  the  black  garments  of  wee  Polly,  and  at  the 
grave  the  cruel  torture  of  listening  to  the  thud  of  the  sexton's  toil, 
as  he  dropped  shovelful  after  shovelful  of  Mother  Earth  upon  that 
terribly  resonant  box  which  hid  away  the  once  bright  form  of  dear 
Brother  Winny !  No  wonder,  poor  Polly  long  afterward  trembled 
with  fear  at  the  mere  mention  of  Death. 

The  dear  brother  was  laid  away  in  what  was  then  a  far-distant 
grave-yard,  on  Spring  Street  hill,  afterwards  one  of  the  first  bodies 
to  be  removed  to  that  ideal  cemetery.  Forest  Home.  Upon  a  re- 
cumbent slab  near  the  entrance  gates  to  this  God's  acre  may  be  read 
the  name  "Winfield  Scott,"  a  name  which  the  illustrious  general 
himself  bestowed  upon  the  infant  boy. 

During  these  early  days  much  sickness  abounded  in  the  settle- 
ment, and  over-careful  mothers  almost  invariably  drew  their  chil- 
dren into  the  path  of  the  grewsome  juggernaut — funerals — hoping 
that  some  salutary  lesson  to  their  soul's  salvation  might  be  learned 
therefrom.  Thus,  it  happened  that  Polly  was  often  subjected  to 
this  form  of  discipline.  Chief  among  these  occurrences  was  attend- 
ance at  the  obsequies  of  a  dear  playmate — Martha  Miter.  In  con- 
tradistinction, wedding  festivities  were  a  forbidden  pleasure  to 
young  fry ;  at  least  Polly  thought  so,  for  she  never  had  the  pleasure 
of  attending  one,  although  the  rumor  of  their  occurrence  sometimes 
reached  her. 

That  the  child  is  father  to  the  man  is  clearly  proven  in  the 
hankering  after  forbidden  sports.  Polly  and  her  brother  had  oft 
been  told  that  the  creature  with  the  cloven  hoof  and  forked  tail  lay 
in  wait  for  offenders  along  the  line  of  card-playing.  Yet,  in  spite 
of  this  bug-a-boo  warning,  a  group  of  children  with  Polly  on  the 
outskirts,  for  she  was  the  youngest,  collected  in  an  upper  chamber 
and  dared  the  Evil  One.  Guessing  a  card's  value  from  the  exposed 
back  was  the  game  in  hand,  and  everything  was  progressing  satis- 
factorily to  the  little  sinners  until  an  unusual  sound  disturbed  the 
circle.  A  brave  (?)  brother  who  held  the  pack  and  led  the  crowd, 
outdid  any  general  of  my  knowledge  in  beating  a  retreat.  His  note 
of  warning,  to-wit,  that  the  Devil  was  under  the  bed,  sent  the  de- 
moralized squad  helter-skelter  through  the  hall  and  down  the  stair- 


44  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

way,  while  Polly's  short  legs  in  vain  tried  to  join  the  stampede. 
With  hair  standing  on  end  and  eyes  ready  to  leap  from  their  sockets, 
she  stretched  every  nerve  in  the  attempt  to  outstrip  the  terrible 
creature  behind  her,  whose  sulphurous  breath  she  actually  smelled 
and  whose  cloven  hoof  made  the  air  resound.  And,  oh,  didn't  she 
get  a  shaking  when  the  brave  brother  was  obliged  to  return  to  her 
rescue  ?  Such  things  I've  known,  I,  who  speak  to  ye !  In  particu- 
lars of  this  last  incident,  I  can  confidently  state  that  since  Polly's 
time  brothers  have  not  materially  improved. 

Polly  has  remembrance,  too,  of  this  brother  calling  "Indians, 
Indians,"  upon  the  occasion  of  her  having  run  away  from  school 
with  him  and  others  to  visit  the  tamarack  swamp  which  lay  upon 
the  west  side  of  the  Milwaukee  river.  The  sweetness  of  the  gum 
vanished  at  home-coming  with  the  disgrace  of  being  housed  with 
the  dog  under  the  table  until  time  to  go,  supperless,  to  bed.  The 
complete  ruin  of  a  brand  new  green  cloak  (through  mud  spatters), 
and  the  necessity  of  wearing  the  same  through  the  live-long  winter, 
was  a  continual  reminder  to  Polly  of  her  naughty  escapade.  At 
recollection  of  such  trials,  she  would  not  request  time  to  reverse. 

During  these  early  times  the  environs  of  Milwaukee  were  para- 
disiacal to  youthful  wanderers.  In  summer  their  nimble  feet  scoured 
hill  and  valley  to  gather  in  the  harvests  from  woods  and  fields  or 
wandered  to  the  lake  bluffs  where  the  wonderful  light-house  was 
located.  Near  this  structure  was  platted  the  most  beautiful  posey 
garden  in  all  the  world,  with  its  rows  of  sweet  William,  blue-bells, 
marigolds  and  poppies.  Here,  too,  were  the  delightful  grassy 
parterres  of  the  bold  bluffs,  adown  which  the  children  would  roll 
until  they  reached  the  flight  of  steps  that  led  to  the  pebbly  beach, 
whereon  lay  wealth  of  stone  and  shell  to  everlasting  damage  of  shoes 
and  pockets.  Yet,  nothing  ever  so  bewitched  these  young  explorers 
as  did  the  sight  of  fishermen's  huts  and  paraphernalia  which  clung 
as  securely  to  the  step  declivities  as  do  barnacles  to  the  side  of  a 
ship.  It  mattered  not  how  odorous  the  atmosphere  of  this  locality, 
how  shiny  the  foot-path  or  how  incongruous  the  surroundings,  here 
the  small  adventurers  would  linger  until  darkness  or  a  messenger 
summoned  them  home. 

Such  ideal  spots  for  picnicking  as  lay  all  about  Milwaukee !  And 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  46 

yet  Polly  remembers  but  one,  and  that  was  distinguished  as  a  Sun- 
day-scliool  celebration.  A  staidly  proper  thing,  to  which,  by  couples, 
the  children  were  marshaled  in  a  long  procession  that  stretched  its 
demure  length  over  an  uneven  path  to  a  grove  on  Spring  Street 
hill.  Here,  it  was  ranged  upon  roughly  constructed  seats  to  listen 
to  the  customary  Sunday-school  exhorter,  who,  unwittingly,  led  little 
ones  to  believe  that  good  children  die  young;  therefore,  no  child 
within  ear-shot  cared  to  be  good.  Picnics  were  not  then  so  much 
a  necessity  to  the  savage  side  of  humanity  as  are  they  now.  Then,  a 
person  might  enjoy  flies,  mosquitoes  and  other  insects  within  his 
own  domain ;  and  as  to  drinking  from  over  a  stone  wall,  home  cups 
were  nearly  all  of  that  order.  There  were  always  a  few  choice  pieces 
of  tableware  hidden  away  as  sacred  to  the  use  of  the  minister  or 
other  infrequent  visitor. 

This  one  event  of  the  picnic  marked  an  era  in  Polly's  life  as  she 
marched  among  her  mates,  proudly  conscious  of  being  a  "jiner." 
The  lettered  blue-silk  badge  that  fluttered  from  her  shoulder  told 
all  the  world  that  she  was  a  member  of  Plymouth  S.  S.  of  Mil- 
waukee in  Wisconsin  Territory. 

For  the  sake  of  dear  old  long  ago,  I  hope  that  the  infant  church 
which  was  located  on  Spring  street  near  the  bridge  was  never  con- 
verted into  a  livery  stable.  Query. — Do  the  good  folk  of  Milwaukee 
relegate  their  erstwhile  sanctums  to  such  base  use  because  Christ  was 
born  in  a  manger  ? 

One  questionable  pastime  of  Polly  and  her  mates  was  to  visit  a 
hill  on  the  East  Side,  at  the  foot  of  which  stood  an  unoccupied 
house ;  or,  rather,  occupied  only  by  the  ghost  of  a  man  who  had  been 
murdered  therein.  What  condition  can  more  fully  contribute  to  the 
entertainment  of  a  harum-scarum,  venturesome  child  than  that 
which  contains  a  spice  of  horror?  As  long  as  the  dreaded  house 
stood  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  so  long  it  remained  a  target  for  sticks, 
stones  and  jeers  of  an  unruly  crowd  of  youngsters,  who,  standing 
afar  off,  made  the  air  resound  with  naughty  jibes  and  jests.  That 
the  ghost  finally  became  desperate  over  these  demonstrations,  was 
evidenced  through  the  appearance  against  an  upper  winder  pane  of 
a  giant,  mutilated  bloody  hand.  If  these  children  had  each  pos- 
sessed the  one  thousand  legs  of  the  renovmed  worm,  they  could  not 


46  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

have  vanished  from  that  vicinity  more  speedily  than  did  they  vanish 
upon  this  exhibition,  with  each  his  own  two  legs. 

This  house  was  afterwards  renovated.  It  was  moved  to  another 
part  of  the  lot  on  which  it  stood,  but  all  of  no  avail ;  that  ambitious 
ghost  still  clung  to  his  habitat.  You  may  move,  you  may  alter 
the  house  if  you  wiU ;  but  the  taint  of  the  ghost  will  cling  to  it  still. 

If  Milwaukee  were  a  children's  paradise  in  Summer,  it  certainly 
deserved  an  equal,  if  not  a  higher,  reputation  through  its  Winter 
attractions.  Girls  were  not  so  completely  in  evidence  through  this 
season's  sports,  but  boys — boys  held  high  carnival  on  frozen  marsh 
and  river,  while  the  girls  hung  about  the  edges  wishing  with  all  their 
might  that  nature  had  made  them  boys.  Thank  fortune,  that  con- 
ditions in  the  world  of  sport  have  greatly  changed  since  Polly's  play- 
days.  But  there  were  times,  places  and  conditions  when  it  was  good 
to  be  "nothing  but  a  girl,"  to-wit,  a  brilliantly  moon-lit  Winter's 
eve,  a  softly-padded,  diamond  besprinkled  coasting  hill,  a  youthful 
admirer,  the  proud  possessor  of  the  "bulliest  sled  upon  the  hill." 
And  then  if  during  the  racing  which  inevitably  followed,  there 
came,  when  part  way  down  the  incline,  a  general  mix-up  of  broken 
sleds  and  bruised  girls  and  boys,  what  mattered  it  ?  Father's  money 
would  repair  the  sleds,  and  mother's  plasters  would  repair  the 
youngsters,  while  the  latter  would  have  the  satisfaction  of  telling 
how  it  all  happened  and  who  was  to  blame,  although  no  two  of  them 
could  possibly  agree  upon  these  details.  In  the  nowadays,  Polly  can 
scarce  repress  a  tearful  sigh  at  recollection  of  the  vanished  pleas- 
ures of  Milwaukee  Street  hill. 

Polly's  first  experience  of  school  was  at  the  tender  age  of  four 
years.  In  the  early  days,  no  doubt  children  were  expected  to  be 
models  of  propriety,  training  or  no  training.  Unfortunately,  Polly 
was  not  built  that  way,  and  in  a  very  unlucky  moment  she  sniggered 
aloud — four  years  old,  too,  and  her  first  day  at  school !  This  mat- 
tered not.  The  brave  pantalooned  creature — called  a  teacher — 
snatched  the  small  offender  from  off  the  front  form  and  admin- 
istered a  strapping  that  stings  to  the  present  day.  But  she  had  her 
revenge;  for  years  afterward  she  had  the  extreme  satisfaction 
(whilst  on  a  lake  excursion)  of  meeting  her  old  persecutor  to  whom 
she  introduced  herself  as  the  quondam  little  girl  whom  he  lashed 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  47 

upon  her  first  day  at  school.    Polly  thinks  that  he  did  not  enjoy  the 
encounter  quite  as  much  as  did  she. 

Of  the  educational  institutions  that  Polly  attended  regularly 
the  first  was  in  the  basement  of  the  church  that  once  stood  upon 
ground  now  occupied  by  Chapman's  store.  This  was  presided  over 
by  a  lady  in  corkscrew  curls  and  white  kid  gloves.  To  Polly's  great 
amazement  and  probable  admiration,  she  wore  the  latter  during 
school  hours,  and  withal,  wielded  the  rod  of  correction  quite  as 
dexterously  as  did  the  male  teacher  afore  mentioned. 

Another  school  "for  girls  only"  was  located  in  a  private  house 
on  Michigan  street.  Here,  Polly  learned  little  of  books,  but  much 
of  kindly  care  and  the  use  of  the  needle.  At  the  present  day,  she 
can  show  you  a  most  wonderful  sampler  whose  birds  and  flowers 
have  no  counterparts  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,  and,  I  should  hope, 
none  in  the  heavens  above.  However,  the  spirit  of  love  and  affection 
in  which  this  teacher  presided  over  her  flock,  will  linger  in  the 
memories  of  her  pupils  so  long  as  reason  has  its  sway  therein. 

Polly's  next  adventure  on  the  high  road  to  learning  was  with 
the  dear  sisters  of  St.  John's  school.  Here,  church,  creed  and  cat- 
echism were  held  paramount  to  the  three  R's,  and  though  none  of 
the  attendants  progressed  rapidly  in  book  learning,  they  caught  in- 
spiration along  the  line  of  kindness  and  charity.  Here,  Polly  dis- 
tinguished herself  through  receiving  a  prize  for  scholarship  at  the 
hands  of  the  good  priest  who  watched  over  the  flock.  The  book  re- 
ceived was  loaned  to  Julia  Rooney  and  went  up  in  the  smoke  of  her 
ruined  home. 

Polly  was  next  sent  to  a  stem  professor  who  practiced  dumb-bell 
exercises  with  the  forms  of  small  boys,  his  scalp-lock  performance, 
by  which  he  lifted  some  poor  little  offender  off  his  seat  to  send  him 
flying  over  imoffending  heads  of  front  rows  was  really  worthy  of  at- 
tention by  any  athlete  however  accomplished. 

Polly,  sniffing  danger  in  the  air,  pleaded  pathetically  for  yet  an- 
other change  in  her  educational  career.  This  time  her  steps  were 
directed  into  the  classical  shades  of  French,  Latin,  Greek  and  other 
brain-puzzling  pursuits,  as  set  forth  by  Professor  Larigo.  With 
these,  however,  she  had  naught  to  do.  Bullion's  grammer  and  Emma 


48  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

Willard's  history  being  sufficiently  formidable  stumbling  blocks  in 
her  pathway  to  knowledge. 

Prizes  for  good  scholarship  were  quite  the  fad  of  those  days, 
and  again  did  Polly  receive  substantial  reward  for  her  parrotlike 
recitations.  This  roused  the  ire  of  the  Franco-Latin  contestants  to 
such  degree  as  to  necessitate  a  bodyguard  for  the  safe  conveyance  of 
the  prize  into  the  home  haven.  Fortunately,  for  Polly's  scholastic 
reputation  acquired  in  the  Cream  City,  she  was,  soon  after  this 
victory,  removed  to  a  distant  outpost  in  the  Pioneer  field. 

It  was  during  the  last  year  or  two  of  her  residence  in  Milwau- 
kee that  she  became  stage-struck.  Her  first  introduction  to  the  de- 
lights of  the  theatre  was  at  the  appearance  of  Julia  Dean  in  the 
grand  "histrionic"  temple  that,  stood  upon  Broadway  between  Michi- 
gan and  Wisconsin  streets.  Polly  has  long  since  lost  the  name  of 
the  play,  but  the  impress  of  the  beautiful  actress's  charm  still 
lingers  with  her.  But  the  spectacle  paramount  in  her  youthful 
memory  is  one  that  in  the  40's  so  delighted  Milwaukee  youngsters, 
to-wit,  "Beauty  and  the  Beast."  Through  a  playmate  whose  father 
presided  over  the  wonderful  abode  of  Terpsichore  afore  mentioned, 
Polly  was  allowed  to  awaken  the  echoes  of  zinc  thunder,  and  to 
bring  forth  from  the  tin  cylinder  the  sound  of  pattering  rain. 

Although  through  this  freedom  of  the  play-house  she  became 
familiarized  with  many  a  stuffed  stage  monster,  there  was  one  real 
live  one  whose  vicinity  she  shunned — that  of  a  wolf  chained  to  a 
stake  in  the  theatre  yard.  It  happened  upon  one  beautiful  moon- 
lit night  that  Polly's  mother  went  to  prayer-meeting,  leaving  her 
little  girl  in  charge  of  a  big  brother,  who,  perhaps,  had  an  engage- 
ment with  somebody's  else  sister ;  for  soon  after  mother's  departure 
he  left  the  premises  to  Polly  and  solitude.  Polly,  resenting  this 
slight  to  her  powers  of  entertainment,  sought  the  street  in  search  of 
company,  which,  to  her  discomfiture,  she  soon  found  in  a  ditch  by 
the  wayside.  Master  Wolf  had  escaped  his  chains  and  was  out  to 
enjoy  a  moonlight  escapade.  Had  he  possessed  the  tact  and  suavity 
of  Eed  Eiding  Hood's  wolf,  all  might  have  gone  well  with  him ;  but 
he  was  altogether  too  ardent  in  his  demonstrations,  which  brought 
from  our  lone  little  wanderer  a  series  of  screams  that  hastened  forth 
to  the  rescue  all  the  hangers-on  at  the  theatre  office.    One  kindly 


GIRLHOOD  MEMORIES  49 

gentleman  gathered  the  child  into  his  protecting  care,  bore  her  home 
and  remained  with  her  until  mother  came  with  comforting  words. 
It  cannot  with  truthfulness  be  stated  that  big  brother  enjoyed  his 
come-coming  upon  that  night. 

In  the  nowadays,  wee-bit  Polly  and  grown-up  Polly  oft  commune 
together  of  the  long  ago  wherein  skies  are  ever  blue,  nature  is  ever 
bright  and  friends  are  ever  true.  Thus,  may  it  continue  until  at 
the  Golden  Stair  may  these  twain  merge  into  one — that  one  being 
a  care-free  child  trustfully  treading  the  unknown  path  that  the 
great  Pioneer  blazed  for  all  his  children  nearly  1900  years  agone. 
May  none  of  us  ignore  His  leadership !  Yea,  may  we  all  meet  to- 
gether in  that  new  Eldorado — The  Hereafter. 


A   Popular  Street  Comer 

By  D.  W.  Fowler. 

The  old  Milwaukee  house,  as  the  pioneers  of  Milwaukee  are 
wont  to  designate  the  first  hotel  of  importance  erected  in  this  city, 
was  built  in  the  year  1836,  by  Solomon  Juneau,  and  Morgan  L. 
Martin,  and  stood  on  lots  7  and  8,  and  perhaps  a  part  of  lot  9,  in 
block  12,  in  what  is  now  the  seventh  ward  of  the  city  of  Milwaukee. 
And  which  is  geographically  described  as  being  on  the  corner  of 
"Wisconsin  Street  and  Broadway,  where  the  Miller  block  now  stands. 

The  hotel  faced  to  the  south,  and  stood  quite  a  distance  to  the 
northward  of  Wisconsin  street,  leaAong  a  plaza  in  front,  which 
was  used  in  the  early  days  by  the  farmers  in  which  to  stand  their 
wagons  while  the  horses  or  oxen  were  being  fed  in  the  bams  in  the 
rear  of  the  hotel,  and  it-  was  no  uncommon  sight  to  see  coralled 
there  as  many  vehicles  as  there  could  be  found  room  for,  while  the 
owners  were  partaking  of  the  hospitalities  of  the  inn,  or  attending 
to  the  business  which  brought  them  to  the  city. 

In  the  year  1850,  this  hotel,  having  perhaps  passed  the  zenith 
of  its  usefulness,  was  divided  into  three  parts  and  sold,  to  be  moved 
off  the  premises  on  which  it  stood.  The  main  part  of  the  structure 
was  moved  to  the  northeast  corner  of  Main  and  Huron  streets,  or 
Washington  Avenue,  as  some  people  in  those  days  attempted  to 
christen  it  anew,  but  the  name  would  not  stick,  and  it  remains 
Huron  street,  to  this  day. 

This  part  was  continued  in  use  as  a  hotel,  and  was  run  in  the 
year  1851,  by  the  firm  of  Skinner  &  Co. 

The  east  wing,  was  bought  by  Andrew  McCormick,  and  moved 
by  him  to  the  northeast  comer  of  Main  and  Detroit  Streets,  and 
continued  in  the  hotel  business  under  the  name  of  the  Keystone 
hotel,  and  was  conducted  for  many  years  by  the  proprietor  and 
owner.  -jl 

The  kitchen  part  of  this  ancient  hostelry  was  removed  to  Detroit 
street  near  Broadway,  on  the  north  side  of  the  street,  and  was  con- 
verted into  what  was  for  many  years  known  as  the  Baltic  House, 


POPULAR  STREET  CORNER  51 

and  was  kept  by  a  man  by  the  name  of  J.  Mc  D.  Smith.  Later  it 
was  again  removed  to  the  southwest  comer  of  Main  and  Detroit 
streets,  where  it  remained  im,til  torn  down,  or  was  again  re- 
moved to  make  way  for  the  erection  of  the  present  Jewett  &  Sher- 
man building. 

Juneau  &  Martin  having  become  indebted  to  the  Farmers'  and 
Mechanics'  Bank  of  Detroit  during  the  years  previous  to  the  year 
1850,  for  which  they  had  pledged  a  large  amount  of  seventh  ward 
real-estate  as  security,  were  at  last  obliged  to  dispose  of  the  property 
to  meet  their  obligations  to  the  bank,  and  thus  it  came  about  that 
a  large  number  of  lots  passed  into  the  possession  and  ownership  of 
the  late  James  S.  Brown,  who  at  once  proceeded  to  dispose  of  them, 
as  fast  as  possible,  to  such  as  might  wish  to  buy,  or  had  use  for 
them. 

On  November  23,  1849,  the  Farmers'  &  Mechanics'  Bank  of 
Detroit,  Mich.,  deeded  to  Mr.  Brown  besides  others,  lots  7,  8,  9, 
and  10,  in  block  twelve,  in  the  Seventh  ward,  and  which  may  be 
geographically  described  as  the  first  four  lots  on  the  east  side  of 
Broadway,  and  from  Wisconsin  street,  north  a  distance  of  240  feet. 

The  deed  above  referred  to,  was  not  recorded  by  Mr.  Brown  and 
seems  to  have  been  forgotten  by  him,  until  May  18,  1861,  although 
the  property  changed  hands  many  times  during  the  interval,  each 
purchaser  in  turn  being  apparently  satisfied  with  a  warranty  deed 
given  by  the  grantor,  and  it  was  not  until  the  Northwestern  Life 
Insurance  Company  came  into  possession  of  one  of  these  lots,  that 
the  fact  was  discovered. 

It  was  necessary  to  obtain  a  certified  copy  of  the  original  deed 
from  the  bank,  and  which  as  before  stated  was  put  on  record  May 
18,  1861. 

On  June  25,  1851,  it  is  of  record  that  Mr.  Brown,  and  Wm.  P. 
Young  entered  into  an  agreement  as  to  party  walls,  Mr.  Young 
having  bought  from  Mr.  Brown,  lots  7  and  8,  in  block  12  it  is  said 
for  $3,000.  Mr.  Young  at  once  proceeded  to  erect  a  building  which 
is  known  in  the  history  of  the  city  as  the  first  'TToung's  Block." 

It  had  not  yet  been  fully  completed,  when  on  the  evening  of 
the  10th  of  February  1852  the  German  Musical  society  gave  a  con- 


52  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

cert  therein  which  was  followed  two  days  later  by  the  annual  ball 
of  Fire  Engine  company  No.  1.  These  were  the  only  entertain- 
ments ever  held  in  this  hall,  for  on  the  Sunday  following  the  ball, 
at  about  5  :30  P.  M.  a  fire  broke  out  said  to  have  been  caused  by  the 
stoves  used  in  drying  the  plastering,  and  in  a  remarkably  short 
space  of  time  the  whole  building  was  in  flames,  and  was  completely 
destroyed,  the  north  wall  falling  upon  the  dwelling  of  Lucas  Seaver 
adjoining  and  doing  much  damage. 

The  Musical  society  having  intended  to  repeat  their  perfor- 
mance had  left  many  valuable  instruments  and  much  music,  in  the 
hall  during  the  interval.  These  were  totally  destroyed,  and  the  loss 
on  instrumental  music  alone,  it  is  claimed,  was  upwards  of  $2,000. 

Mr.  George  Papendeick,  lost  a  violin  valued  at  $500.  Mr.  George 
Durige  a  violin  worth  $300,  and  a  violoncello,  worth  an  equal 
amount. 

Lots  9  and  10  were  divided  up  into  five  lots  of  24  feet  each 
facing  on  Broadway  and  an  agreement  was  entered  into  with  the 
purchasers  to  erect  jointly  a  block  of  five  dwellings  thereon,  which 
were  to  be  two  story  and  basement  houses,  with  attics.  The  first 
story  or  basement  as  it  might  be  called,  was  almost  entirely  above 
ground  and  the  entrance  to  the  second  story  was  made  by  a  flight 
of  stairs  leading  from  the  ground.  Mr.  Brown,  it  is  believed, 
erected  the  first  two,  which  were  located  on  what  is  now  414  and 
416  Broadway,  and  the  next  one  to  the  north  was  erected  by 
Philetus  Yale,  and  the  next  at  420  Broadway  was  erected  by  George 
W.  Mygatt,  and  the  last,  or  north  one,  was  built  by  Ashael  Finch. 
Mr.  Brown  appears  to  have  sold  his  house  soon  after  its  completion 
to  Lucas  Seaver,  who  again  sold  it  to  Philip  A.  Hall, 
March,  1853.  No  consideration  named,  and  he  in  turn  gave  a 
power  of  attorney  to  Seaver  to  sell  the  same,  which  he  did  Sept. 
12,  1853,  to  A.  B.  Van  Cott,  for  the  sum  of  $896.39,  subject  to 
a  mortgage  to  James  S.  Brown  on  which  was  due  at  that  time  the 
sum  of  $2,000.63.  A.  B.  Van  Cott  took  up  his  residence  there  and 
tived  there  for  about  ten  years  when  he  transferred  the  title  to 
A.  H.  Gale  &  Co.,  of  New  York  for  $10,350.  Somebody  forgot 
to  pay  the  taxes  about  this  time  and  the  late  J.  V.  V.  Platto, 
appeared  promptly  on  the  ground  to  pay  them  for  the  owner.    He 


POPULAR  STREET  CORNER  53 

obtained  a  tax  deed  which  he  relinquished  to  the  owner  October 
16,  1863.  A.  H.  Gale  &  Co.,  transferred  the  property  to  Greo. 
W.  Peckham  in  August  1866,  for  $9,000.  August  5,  1876,  Rufus 
Peckharn  administerator,  quit  claimed  to  Mary  P.  and  Geo,  W. 
Peckham  to  each  an  undivided  one  half,  and  they  sold  to  Judson 
A.  Roundy  the  present  owner  for  $9,500,  the  same  year.  These 
are  the  premises  now  known  as  414  Broadway. 

The  premises  at  416  Broadway  went  from  Mr.  Brown  to  J.  P. 
Whaling,  Feb.  5,  1851  for  $1,000  and  from  him  to  D.  H.  Chandler, 
May  2,  1852  and  from  the  latter  to  Allen  Wheeler  for  $3,000  Jan. 
1,  1853.  He  deeded  it  to  Fred  Clark  for  the  same  amount  Jan. 
1,  1853,  and  the  same  day  Fred  Clark  deeded  it  to  his  wife  Roxana 
Ann  Wheeler.  She  died,  and  Allen  Wheeler  was  appointed  guard- 
ian of  her  children  Dec.  26,  1856.  It  was  next  sold  by  order  of  the 
court  to  Henry  Cadwell  for  $9,000  and  the  next  time  it  was  sold 
it  was  by  Herman  L.  Page,  then  sheriff  of  Milwaukee  county  on 
forclosure  of  a  mortgage  to  Eliphalet  Cramer  for  the  sum  of 
$5,900,  August  14,  1858.  Mr.  Cramer  was  given  a  deed  of  it  by 
A.  J.  Langworthy,  sheriff,  Nov.  5,  1859.  November  10,  1859, 
Eliphalet  Cramer  deeded  it  to  Oliver  Al  Blake,  no  consideration 
being  named,  and  on  May  3,  1865,  Lewis  A.  Blake  and  wife  deeded 
it  to  the  Northwestern  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company,  for  the 
sum  of  $9,000.  February  11,  1868,  the  Insurance  company  deeded 
it  to  Mrs.  Marilla  Hewitt  for  $13,000  and  she  to  Judson  A.  Roundy, 
August  13,  1876,  no  consideration  named. 

Philetus  Yale,  our  venerable  fellow  citizen,  who  still  survives 
at  the  age  of  87  years,  was  the  purchaser  from  Mr.  Brown,  of  the 
premises  at  418  Broadway,  and  erected  his  house  there  in  1851. 
He  writes  to  me  in  regard  to  the  matter  as  follows : 

"I  think  the  attic  of  my  house  was  finished  when  built.  There 
were  five  houses  alike — two  stories  with  basement.  Everything 
was  cheap  then;  the  bricks  were  but  $3.50  per  thousand  and  bought 
of  our  old  friend  James  H.  Rogers;  masons  $1.75  per  day,  laborers 
fifty  cents,  good  carpenters  $1.25  and  common  ones  at  $1.00. 
James  S.  B^o^vn  owned  four  lots  in  block  12  and  sold  the  two 
comer  lots  located  on  the  comer  of  Main  and  Wisconsin  street, 
to  Wm.  B.  Young  for  $3,000.     The  two  lots  on  which  we  built 


54  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

our  five  houses  were  valued  by  Mr.  Brown  at  $2,500,  Myself 
and  Ashael  Finch  and  Geo.  W.  Mygatt  bought  three  lots  of  34 
feet  each  at  $1,000  and  Mr.  Brown  kept  two.  The  five  houses 
covered  the  sixty  foot  lots  and  were  built  in  the  year  1851.  I 
lived  in  the  house  that  I  built  nine  years  when  I  converted  it  into 
a  store  which  still  stands  on  the  premises  at  418  Broadway. 

George  W.  Mygatt,  well  known  to  all  old  settlers  as  one  of  the 
first  architects  of  this  city,  bought  the  lot  at  420  Broadway,  and 
lived  in  the  tenement  that  he  erected  many  years  ago.  He  used 
the  lower  story  of  his  house  for  an  office,  where  he  conducted 
business  for  many  years.  Henry  C.  Koch,  one  of  most  distin- 
guished men  in  his  profession,  could  at  an  early  day  be  seen  there 
learning  the  rudiments  of  his  art,  which  has  brought  him  fame 
and  fortune.  Mr.  Mygatt  sold  to  Mat  Keenan,  Oct.  6,  1873,  for 
$10,000.  The  north  24  feet  of  lot  10,  was  sold  by  Mr.  Brown  to  the 
late  Ashael  Finch,  who  built  that  tentment  of  this  once  famous 
row.  "Whether  he  ever  resided  there  I  am  unable  to  say,  but  I  think 
that  he  did  and  for  several  years.  On  August  6,  1858,  he  sold 
it  to  \Vm.  J.  Whaling,  who  lived  there  for  a  time,  and  one  of  whose 
daughters  died  there.  Mr.  Whaling  sold  to  Alfred  Chapin,  and 
Mr.  Chapin  at  once  deeded  it  to  his  wife,  August  9,  1858,  and  they 
in  turn  to  Mrs.  Mary  Shanks,  Nov.  2,  1865,  for  the  sum  of  $8,000. 
Mrs.  Shanks  kept  it  until  Feb.  23,  1867,  when  she  deeded  it  to 
Romanzo  B.  Rice  for  $12,000.  The  following  December  he  sold 
it  to  Geo.  W.  Peckham,  for  $13,000.  Geo.  W.  Peckham  conveyed 
it  to  Rufus  P.  Peckham,  Jan.  19,  1871;  W.  H.  Peckham,  et  al 
May  1,  1876,  to  Amelia  R.  Maschauer  for  $10,500,  and  she  to  Chas. 
H.  Haskins,  and  he  to  the  Wisconsin  Telephone  company,  Oct.l8, 
1882  for  $11,500.  The  house  had  been  converted  into  a  store  about 
1862  or  1865  and  in  this  store  the  celebrated  firm  of  Wadsworth 
Adams  &  Co.,  commenced  in  the  wholesale  and  retail  grocery  and 
liquor  business,  that  at  a  later  day  ended  so  disastrously  to  the 
members  of  that  firm.  Allen  Wheeler  before  named  was  an  in- 
surance agent  and  conducted  business  at  the  comer  of  Huron  and 
East  Water  streets. 

Lucas  Seaver  was  the  proprietor  of  the  Commercial  Advertiser, 
which  expired  about  the  year   1851.     He   was   afterwards   city 


POPULAR  STREET  CORNER  55 

treasurer.  He  was  an  excellent  singer,  and  he  and  Mrs.  H.  D. 
Torry  sang  at  the  concert  given  in  Gardiner's  hall  December  30, 
1850,  for  the  benefit  of  the  Fireman's  Protective  association  in 
which  the  sum  of  $1,000  was  raised  for  the  relief  of  volunteer  fire- 
men who  were  disabled.  The  concert  was  under  the  direction  of 
Hans  Balatka,  and  H.  N.  Hempsted.  At  that  time  Miss  Helen 
Matthews  also  sang  an  original  song  composed  for  the  occasion  by 
Mrs.  Mary  H.  C.  Booth,  who  was  the  wife  of  Sherman  M.  Booth, 
the  then  editor,  and  proprietor  of  the  Free  Democrat.  The  air 
was  that  of  the  old  time  song  "Roll  on  Silver  Moon."  Mrs.  H.  D. 
Torry  also  sang  an  orignal  fireman's  song  written  by  her  husband 
H.  D.  Torry,  who  was  at  that  time  an  artist  with  his  studio  in 
the  "Emporium"  on  Mason  street,  near  East  Water  street.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Torry  left  the  city  very  soon  after  this  time.  Mrs.  Torry,  and 
Lucas  Seaver,  were  general  favorites  in  Milwaukee  in  that  day,  and 
usually  sang  together  at  most  of  the  entertainments  given  to  amuse 
the  citizens  of  this  then  ambitious  city. 

This  story  would  scarcely  be  complete  without  a  further 
mention  of  the  second,  and  third,  '^Young's  Block."  Mr.  Young, 
with  characteristic  energy,  at  once  commenced  the  erection  of 
anorther  building  after  the  destruction  of  the  first.  This  was  com- 
pleted in  the  year  1853.  In  it  was  a  hall  for  public  use,  which  was 
known  as  "Young's  Hall,"  and  which  soon  became  the  most  popular 
place  of  amusement  in  the  city.  This  new  structure  soon  fell  a 
victim  to  the  unsparing  element  of  fire,  and  was  again  totally 
destroyed  on  the  21st  of  June,  1859.  Again  Mr.  Young  bent  his 
energies  to  the  construction  and  erection  of  another  building,  which 
he  commenced  in  the  year  1859,  and  completed  in  the  year  1860, 
and  which  still  remains  a  monument  to  his  industry  and  genius. 
The  frequent  losses  which  he  had  sustained  caused  him  to  become 
embarrassed  financially,  and  the  ownership  of  this  property  soon 
fell  into  other  hands.  Mr.  Young,  removed  to  St.  Louis,  where 
he  died,  his  fortune,  like  those  of  many  other  and  no  less  energetic, 
and  ambitious  pioneers,  having  melted  away. 

The  Miller  Block  as  it  is  now  known,  has  already  passed  from 
the  possession  of  the  first  generation  of  owners  of  that  name,  into 
that  of  the  second,  and  has  become  one  of  the  most  valuable  prop- 


56  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

erties  in  the  city,  which  it  is  predicted  will  be  greatly  enhaaced 
during  the  coming  years. 

Philip  A.  Hall  bought  the  south  24  feet  of  block  9,  Oct.  10, 
1851,  and  the  building  thereon  for  the  sum  of  $2,800.  He  bought 
it  of  Mr.  Brown.  He  did  not  remain  in  Milwaukee  very  long  but 
he  continued  to  own  the  house  until  1853,  when  on  the  18th  day  of 
March  of  that  year  he  gave  a  power  of  attorney  to  sell  the  property. 

The  Bellview  hotel,  afterwards  called  the  Milwaukee  House, 
was  commenced  in  the  year  1835,  and  was  not  fully  completed 
until  1837.  The  first  proprietors  were  Daniel  Wells,  and  Dr.  T.  J. 
Noyes,  of  whom  it  is  said  that  they  kept  it  'Tiike  hell"  for  a  short 
time,  and  then  sold  out  to  Henry  Williams  and  B.  H.  Edgerton, 
and  they  to  George  E.  Meyers,  and  he  to  Capt.  L.  H.  Cotton  and 
Luther  Childs.  They  in  turn  sold  out  to  George  Myers  and  Chailes 
Hurley,  and  they  transferred  it  to  George  E.  Graves,  Nov.  22nd, 
1839.  Graves  transferred  it  to  Daniel  Wells,  Jr.,  and  he  to  Hurley 
and  Eeam  and  they  to  Jones  Whitney  and  Caleb  Wall,  in  the  year 
1842. 

Wall  &  Whitney  transferred  the  hotel  lease  to  Peleg  G.  Jones 
of  Waukesha  in  October  1845.  P.  G.  Jones  was  the  last  proprietor 
of  the  old  Milwaukee  House  and  continued  to  manage  it  until  it 
was  finally  closed  up  which  was  quite  a  time  before  its  removal  from 
the  original  site  on  Wisconsin  Street. 


Anecdotes   of   Pioneers 

Eead  by  Peter  Van  Veehten,  Jr.,  in  1894. 

There  were  no  old  men  in  Milwaukee  in  1845 — that  is,  men  over 
60  years  old.  John  Dunbar,  the  father-in-law  of  Jason  Downer, 
was  the  oldest  man  I  recollect.  A  gray-headed  man  was  a  rarity. 
But  all  those  young  men  then  are  gray-headed  now. 

There  were  many  queer  signs  on  stores,  and  advertisements  in 
the  papers  to  attract  attention.  H.  N.  Connant  was  in  the  cloth- 
ing, gents'  furnishing  goods  and  hat  busings  on  East  Water  street. 
He  had  for  his  sign  three  hats  instead  of  three  balls  and  announced 
that  there  was  "great  excitement"  at  his  place.  Uncle  Ben  Throop 
had  his  store  a  few  doors  north,  on  the  ground  now  occupied  by 
A.  C.  Feldt.  He  had  a  stuffed  deer  skin,  with  head  and  horns,  set 
up  and  it  looked  like  a  live  deer.  His  advertisement  read :  "No  ex- 
citement ;  all  perfectly  cool.    No  flattery  at  Unde  Ben's." 

Edward  Emery,  the  confectioner  on  Wisconsin  street,  sold  his 
candy  two  sticks  for  a  cent  apiece,  and  every  week  he  entertained 
us  with  a  fresh  supply  of  machine  poetry. 

B.  F.  Fay,  No.  139  East  Water  street,  sold  dry  goods,  groceries, 
etc.;  notified  the  people  that  he  had  100  barrels  of  whiskey,  the 
latest  brands,  a  staple  article  for  the  West;  S.  L.  Rood  had  10,000 
goose  quills,  from  which  pens  could  be  made  that  would  kill  more 
men  politically  than  the  same  number  of  swords.  John  Ogden 
would  give  you  a  fresh  cut  of  beef  steak  at  the  Red  Market  on  East 
Water  street,  north  of  Wisconsin  street.  R.  W.  Pierce  made  friction 
matches  in  the  West  ward.  They  were  also  called  Loco  Foco  matches, 
and  it  also  was  the  name  given  to  the  Democratic  party.  At  one  of 
the  meetings  in  Tammany  hall.  New  York,  the  lights  were  put  out 
suddenly,  and  a  man  whose  name  was  Job  Haskell  had  a  box  of 
Loco  Foco  matches  in  his  pocket.  He  immediately  struck  a  light 
with  his  friction  matches.  That  act  gave  the  name  of  Loco  Foco 
party  to  one  branch  of  Tammany.  Job  Haskell  lived  in  Milwaukee  in 
1845  and  went  to  Port  Washington  in  1848  and  died  there.  The 
fire  department  was  frequently  called  upon  to  stop  the  friction  and 
put  out  the  fire  in  Pierce's  match  factory. 


68  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Fred  Wardner  announced  that  he  had  experienced  a  'Tieavy 
earthquake,"  caused  by  the  fall  in  prices  of  his  goods.  Royal 
Houghton's  advertisement  was  ''West  ward,  ho,  forever,"  for  his 
dry  goods  and  groceries.  R.  D.  Jennings'  "West  Ward  Store"  had 
made  new  arrangements  by  which  he  could  undersell  everybody. 
Henry  Sayers  said :  "The  cry  is  still :  'They  come  to  the  People's 
Store.' "  Joe  and  Lindsey  Ward  were  perfectly  willing  to  ex- 
change their  goods  for  wheat.  "War,  war,  war,  with  Mexico !"  had 
not  affected  the  prices  at  A.  G.  Dayan's  store  in  Heide's  block,  so  that 
he  could  supply  all  that  came  to  him  for  relief.  The  great  fire 
in  New  York  had  not  destroyed  the  stock  of  E.  C.  Kellogg ;  his  gro- 
ceries were  safe  in  his  •store  on  East  Water  street;  below  Huron, 
Ludington  &  Co.  held  the  comer  store,  and  their  customer,  John  T. 
Perkins,  had  his  planing  mill  on  the  canal ;  John  Lapointe  and  Alex- 
ander Bangley  their  sash,  blind  and  door  factory;  Locke  &  Rich- 
mond, pail  and  tub  factory.  Nearly  all  the  merchants  sold  sash, 
doors,  pails  and  tubs.  They  paid  for  them  in  goods  by  orders  drawn 
on  them  by  the  manufacturers,  given  to  their  workmen.  All  stores 
had  running  accounts  with  each  other,  and  the  manufacturers  and 
the  carpenter  and  mason  contractors  drew  orders  on  the  stores  to 
pay  their  men.  At  the  end  of  the  year  the  accounts  were  settled, 
and  the  balance  paid  by  a  due  bill.  George  W.  Mygatt  was  an  archi- 
tect and  contractor.  At  the  end  of  the  year  he  always  managed  to  be 
in  debt  when  the  accounts  were  settled,  due  bills  given  for  the  bal- 
ance and  receipts  passed.  He  would  give  a  sigh  of  relief  as  he  said : 
"Thank  God,  that  bill  is  paid." 

Among  the  new  firms  that  came  that  Fall  was  Sexton  &  Crane. 
They  opened  the  first  exclusive  wholesale  dry  goods  store  in  Mil- 
waukee, November  17th,  1845,  in  the  United  States  Hotel  block, 
first  door  north  of  the  hotel  entrance.  No.  132  East  Water  street 
(now  332).  Their  store  was  20  by  50.  They  occupied  only  the  first 
floor  and  basement  or  cellar.  Lorin  Sexton  of  the  firm  did  not  come 
to  Milwaukee,  but  sent  out  Mr.  Crane  and  Milton  E.  L3rman  to  open 
up  and  commence  business.  Six  or  eight  months  of  western  life 
was  enough  for  Mr.  Crane.  I  never  saw  so  homesick  a  man  as  he 
was,  all  winter.  He  went  east  in  the  Spring  of  1846,  sold  out  his 
interest  to  John  Wing,  Jr.,  and  never  came  here  again.  Wing  came 
out  with  his  family,  and  the  firm  changed  to  Sexton  &  Wing.    They 


ANECDOTES  OF  PIONEERS  59 

stayed  there  until  1848,  when  they  moved  to  No.  139  East  Water 
street,  in  the  store  vacated  by  B.  F.  Fay  when  he  went  to  Prairie 
du  Chien  or  Bridgeport,  Wis. 

M.  E.  Lyman  took  a  prominent  part  in  Odd  Fellowship  and  in 
all  public  matters  of  interest  to  Milwaukee.  Thirty  years  ago  he 
moved  to  Bailey's  Harbor,  Wis.,  where  he  was  still  living  in  1893. 
Christian  Preusser  had  his  jewelry  store  on  East  Water  street,  south 
of  the  postoffice,  in  a  frame  building,  on  the  ground  where  George 
Burrough's  trunk  store  now  stands,  and  he  is  the  only  one  in  busi- 
ness in  1845  that  has  not  changed  his  line  of  business  and  is  in  the 
same  business  today. 

The  farmers  about  Milwaukee  had  more  oxen  than  horses.  It  was 
something  new  to  an  eastern  man  to  see  an  emigrant  with  his  family 
and  farming  implements  in  a  wagon,  drawn  by  oxen,  coming  to  the 
west  to  make  himself  a  home.  Another  novelty  was  the  prairie 
schooners,  loaded  with  pig  lead  from  Mineral  Point,  ShuUsburg,  and 
vicinity,  drawn  by  four  or  six  yoke  of  oxen.  The  bull  whackers  vrith 
their  long  handled  whip  stock  made  the  air  ring  cracking  their  whips 
like  pistol  shots.  They  became  very  expert  and  delighted  to  show 
their  skill  in  picking  a  fly  off  the  left  ox's  ear  without  hitting  the  ox. 
The  lead  at  that  time  was  all  shipped  from  here  to  Buffalo,  and  the 
ox  teams  hauled  loads  of  goods  back  for  country  merchants. 

There  were  nineteen  lawyers  practicing  law  in  1845.  Of  that 
lot,  only  two  are  living — A.  R.  R.  Butler  and  Wilson  W.  Graham. 
Ashael  Finch  and  William  Pitt  Lynde  were  the  leading  law  firm. 
Jonathan  E.  Arnold  was  the  leading  criminal  lawyer ;  A.  D.  Smith, 
Isaac  P.  Walker  and  Don  A.  J.  Upman  were  prominent.  James 
Holliday  came  about  this  time.  Soon  after  his  arrival  he  was  en- 
gaged in  a  case  in  which  Ashael  Finch  was  opposing  counsel.  Mr. 
Finch  had  a  bad  habit  of  calling  the  opposing  counsel  a  liar.  Some- 
one told  Holliday  that  it  would  probably  occur  with  him.  True  to 
the  prediction,  when  they  were  engaged  in  an  animated  discussion, 
Finch  called  Holliday  a  liar.  Holliday  coolly  and  deliberately 
walked  up  to  Finch  and  knocked  him  out  in  the  first  round.  Judge 
Frasier  called  time,  brought  both  before  the  bar,  and  fined  them 
fifty  dollars,    Holliday  immediately  paid  his  fire  and  resumed  his 


60  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

argument  as  if  nothing  had  happened.  Mr.  Finch  never  repeated 
it,  either  in  or  out  of  court. 

The  la^t  notable  event  of  1845  was  on  the  30th  of  December,  the 
robbery  of  R.  K.  Swift,  banker  and  broker,  who  had  his  office  over 
where  Houghton  Brothers'  bank  is  now  located.  During  a  tem- 
porary absence,  $580  was  taken.  The  man  who  took  it  was  con- 
science stricken  and  about  one  week  after  went  to  Bishop  Henni  and 
gave  up  the  money,  which  was  returned  to  Swift.  It  was  pretty  well 
known  who  the  man  was,  but  Swift  received  his  money  and  the  man 
ease  of  mind  when  he  found  he  was  not  to  be  prosecuted.  It  was 
surmised  that  the  hounds  of  the  law  were  on  a  warm  scent  and  that 
rather  facilitated  the  movement  of  the  fellow's  conscience. 

In  1846  it  was  certain  that  the  Dutch  had  taken  Holland,  and 
the  Germans,  Germany,  and  there  was  danger  of  their  encroachment 
upon  the  American  liberties  in  Milwaukee.  There  were  two  military 
companies  in  Milwaukee — the  Washington  Guards,  Capt.  David 
George,  and  the  Milwaukee  Rifles,  Capt.  Henry  Miller,  George  Bros- 
ius,  first  lieutenant.  The  rank  and  file  were  all  Germans.  The 
people  were  not  as  well  acquainted  with  the  foreign  element  then 
as  they  are  now,  and  in  the  minds  of  some  those  foreigners  had  not 
been  here  long  enough  to  forget  the  fatherland  and  become  Ameri- 
canized, and  in  case  of  any  trouble,  could  they  be  depended  upon? 
It  was  a  matter  of  considerable  discussion,  and  it  was  thought  ad- 
visable to  have  a  Yankee  company.  All  Americans  here  were  called 
Yankees  in  those  days. 

A  call  to  organize  a  military  company  was  circulated  and  fifty 
or  more  names  were  obtained.  We  met  in  the  old  Military  hall  on 
Oneida  street.    Gen.  Rufus  King  was  elected  captain ;  Hon.  James 

B.  Kneeland,  first  lieutenant;  J.  N.  Bonsteel,  second  lieutenant;  H. 

C.  Abay,  orderly ;  Wm.  P.  Lynde,  quartermaster,  and  Hiram  Auch- 
moody  was  drill  sergeant.  Auchmoody  had  been  a  marine  soldier, 
but  he  had  been  on  land  long  enough  to  get  off  his  sea  legs.  Our 
uniform  was  made  by  Giesburg  &  Brocus.  We  met  for  drill  in  the 
Military  hall.  The  Mexican  war  broke  out  in  1847,  Most  of  the 
members  of  a  warlike  spirit  went  to  Mexico  and  the  company  soon 
dwindled  down  to  its  officers  and  one  private,  and  disbanded. 

The  Winters  were  long.     Shut  up  from  November  until  May, 


ANECDOTES  OF  PIONEERS  61 

except  the  old  stage  wagon  and  tri-weekly  mail  from  Chicago,  we 
had  to  spend  the  time  in  dancing  parties  and  mischief.  To  get  a 
sell  on  someone  and  particularly  on  some  eastern  man  who  happened 
to  be  here,  or  some  new  comer,  was  a  pleasure  not  to  be  omitted. 

Winchell,  the  delineator  of  character,  was  here,  giving  an  enter- 
tainment. He  was  as  sharp  as  most  people  that  are  on  the  road. 
It  was  a  difficult  matter  to  catch  him.  Uncle  Ben  Throop  had  an 
Indian  whistle  which  had  been  the  means  by  which  considerable 
amusement  had  been  furnished  for  a  dull  Winter.  It  was  made  of 
part  of  a  reed  fish  pole  and  painted  with  Indian  hieroglyphics  in 
gorgeous  style.  Double-headed  Brown  borrowed  it,  took  it  down  to 
the  United  States  hotel  where  Winchell  stopped,  put  it  in  the  office 
in  a  conspicuous  place  over  Clerk  Churchill's  desk.  When  Winchell 
came  in,  it  caught  his  eye,  and  he  said  to  Churchill :  ''What's  that  ?" 
Churchill  said:  "An  Indian  whistle."  Winchell  said:  "Let's  see 
it.  I  used  to  be  quite  an  expert  on  those  things  when  I  was  a  boy." 
He  filled  himself  with  wind  enough  to  blow  the  cylinder  head  out  of 
a  steam  engine  and  blew  a  cloud  of  powdered  charcoal  in  his  face, 
eyes  and  mouth.  The  music  that  was  made  by  the  people  watching 
him  was  not  such  as  Winchell  expected  to  come  out  of  the  whistle, 
that  he  paid  too  dear  for.  It  cost  him  several  bottles  of  cider  and  he 
said  he  would  buy  a  basket  for  them  if  they  would  only  keep  it  still. 
Winchell  immediately  wanted  to  negotiate  for  it,  but  Churchill  could 
not  sell  it  without  Uncle  Ben's  consent.  It  was  finally  given  to  him, 
and  I  made  another  for  Uncle  Ben. 


Water  Front  and  Shipping 
in  the   'SOs 

Eead  Before  the  Club  July  6th,  1888,  by  M.  A.  Boardman. 

Water,  whether  it  be  a  lake  or  sea,  a  river  or  a  brook,  and  the 
craft  that  float  thereon,  has  a  fascination  for  a  full-jeweled  hoy. 

The  ideal  Jack  with  his  curling  locks,  expansive  shirt  collar  and 
flowing  pants  is  as  attractive  to  the  wonder-eyed  lad  as  the  beau 
ideal  of  ye  gentle  savage  as  pictured  by  Cooper. 

Many  an  hour  and  many  a  day  have  I  spent  midst  our  shipping, 
and  the  aroma  from  pitch  and  tar  is  as  sweet  smelling  today  as  in 
the  days  of  youth. 

Like  most  boys  I  had  an  undefined  itching  to  become  a  "jolly 
sailor  man,"  and  I  was  always  a  good  sailor — from  the  shore,  even  as 
the  boastful  baseballist  who  plays  best  from  the  grandstand. 

Of  course  the  mariner  of  today  is  not  the  same  man  he  was  thirty 
years  ago,  so  far  as  our  inland  seas  are  concerned.  Steam  is  so  far 
succeeding  sail  that  expert  seamen  are  not  required  and  even  the 
schooner  has  now  so  much  wire  rigging  that  the  man  before  the 
mast  barely  needs  to  know  how  to  make  a  splice  or  run  a  bow-line, 
and  for  this  reason  it  looks  as  though  the  projectors  of  a  naval  school 
who  have  agitated  the  subject  lately  are  "off  their  reckoning."  What 
is  there  to  be  taught  a  boy  in  school  about  ships?  Do  our  ship- 
masters sit  up  nights  looking  for  a  clear  sky  to  manipulate  their  sex- 
tant and  quadrant  to  learn  their  latitude  or  longitude?  Shall  the 
boy  of  Wisconsin  be  taught  the  uses  of  a  marlinspike,  or  how  to 
figure  a  logarithm?  Hardly;  and  it  looks  somewhat  like  a  jest  to 
advocate  such  a  scheme. 

My  first  knowledge  of  Milwaukee  and  Milwaukee's  nautical 
affairs  was  attained  in  August,  1847,  arriving  at  the  old  "North 
Pier"  with  my  elders  on  the  side-wheeler  Nile.  To  follow  the  subse- 
quent history  of  this  steamer  would  be  to  bring  up  memories  of  the 
past  and  our  surroundings  of  that — to  me — early  date.  Screw  boats 
were  not  on  the  lakes  at  that  time,  and  we  landed  at  a  pier  in  the 


WATERFRONT  AND  SHIPPING  63 

lake  because  the  river  in  its  natural  state  was  too  small,  shallow  and 
winding  for  good  sized  boats  to  ascend. 

The  little  hookers,  at  this  time,  warped  up  the  stream,  running 
their  line  ahead  from  spile  to  spile,  creeping  up  the  tortuous  stream 
from  the  mouth  to  their  destination.  This  mouth  was  near  Bay 
View  on  the  site  now  occupied  by  the  Menomonee  Iron  Company's 
docks  and  the  stream  led  up  via  the  present  yard  of  Wolf  &  David- 
son. The  steamer  Nile  went  ashore  at  the  foot  of  Michigan  street  in 
1848,  was  raised  and  floated  to  just  about  this  spot,  viz.,  the  foot  of 
Washington  street,  where  the  famous  yellow  warehouse  stood.  It 
was  intended  to  repair  the  steamer,  but  some  malcontented  workmen 
fired  her — 1850 — when  she  burned  at  her  dock  and  sank,  demoraliz- 
ing the  old  yellow  house  at  the  same  time.  She  was  raised  again  and 
was  to  be  metamorphosed  into  a  schooner,  but  the  hull  was  found 
warped,  and  so  she  was  towed  up  the  river  to  the  island  just  north  of 
Cherry  Street  bridge,  where  she  was  supposed  to  have  reached  her 
final  resting  place ;  but  not  so,  for  the  rains  fell  and  the  floods  came 
and  a  Spring  freshet  was  too  much  for  her  and  she  drifted  down  into 
the  draw  of  the  Red  bridge  and  proved  herself  a  nuisance,  and  ac- 
cordingly she  was  hauled  into  the  lake  and  swallowed  up.  (I  have 
some  well-preserved  oak  from  her.) 

Skating  rinks  were  unknown  and  we  needed  none  for  we  were 
supplied  with  good  ice  on  the  river  to  all  points — from  the  mouth  to 
the  second  dam  at  Humbolt.  Now  the  presence  of  vessels,  the  warm 
contributions  from  the  sewers  and  the  swell  from  the  lake  have  taken 
this  field  almost  entirely  from  us.  These  same  causes  with  the  inter- 
ference of  numerous  bridges  have  robbed  us  also  of  our  Winter  race 
course.  The  stretch  from  Spring  Street  bridge  to  Walker's  Point 
was  the  chief  resort  for  many  years,  and  all  classes  gathered  here  for 
trials  of  speed. 

Spring  freshets  are  among  the  bygones.  Having  fewer  bridges, 
more  ice  and  a  greater  supply  of  rapidly  accumulated  water,  we  then 
experienced  rapid  currents,  ice  gorges,  broken  bridges  and  damaged 
cellars  and  some  battered  shipping,  but  those  incidents  have  passed. 
The  island  referred  to  where  the  Nile  lay  is  now  Cape  street  from 
Cherry  to  Pleasant.  The  Red  bridge  is  historical.  The  color  of  its 
coat  gave  it  its  name.    The  draw  was  unlike  any  other,  it  being  lifted 


64  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

to  a  perpendicular  instead  of  a  floating  swing.  This  was  the  place 
where  the  "bridge  war"  culminated,  and  cannon  were  brought  out  to 
shoot  or  intimidate  the  enemy  who  proposed  to  make  the  east  and 
west  sides  of  our  town  a  dual  city. 

The  bridges  in  existence  in  the  early  50'8  were  the  Red  at  Chest- 
nut, and  carried  across  the  stream  on  spiles.  A  float  at  Spring  streets 
also  one  at  East  Water  and  Ferry  called  Walker's  Point  bridge,  and 
also  two  stationary  ones,  at  foot  of  West  Water  and  one  at  the  south 
end  of  Kinnickinic  avenue,  across  the  creek  of  same  name. 

All  of  the  territory  south  and  west  of  this  Menomonee  bridge  is 
"made"  ground.  From  Eeed  street  over  the  old  Union  depot  west- 
ward, in  1851  and  1852,  not  a  building  existed.  In  the  Menomonee 
valley  where  we  have  so  many  miles  of  slips  and  docks  the  classic 
Menomonee  silently  meandered  in  an  indefinite  bed,  surrounded  by 
flags  and  cattails.  Norman  Richmond's  brick  paper  mill  stood  near 
the  foot  of  Second  street  and  in  wet  weather,  water  stood  over  much 
of  the  territory  from  here  to  the  American  house,  on  the  site  of  the 
present  Plankinton  house,  and  the  few  buildings  were  approachable 
at  times  of  flood  only  by  elevated  walks.  Having  told  the  story  so 
many  times  I  have  taught  myself  to  believe  that  my  assertions  are 
true  that  I  have  skated  from  Spring  street  to  the  Menomonee. 

A  short  bridge  spanned  the  bayou  at  Oneida  and  River  streets, 
and  where  River  street  strikes  north,  was  water  enough  to  float  the 
biggest  of  schooners.  This  bayon  ran  north  nearly  to  Juneau  ave- 
nue and  was  crossed  by  a  bridge  also  at  the  foot  of  Martin  street, 
for  there  was  a  good  stretch  of  solid  land  between  the  bayou  (River 
street)  and  the  river  proper.  Quite  an  extensive  lumber  yard  occu- 
pied this  territory  west  of  the  bridge.  It  was  run  by  a  man  named 
Englehardt,  if  I  remember  correctly.  Scores  of  times  I  have  crossed 
here  to  deliver  the  Evening  'Sconsin  and  the  Commercial  Adver- 
tiser. About  this  time  Pierce  ran  for  President  and  in  political 
harangues  it  was  stated  that  he  had  once  been  a  printer  and  it  oc- 
curred to  my  boyish  mind.  Why  cannot  I  be  President  in  the  proper 
time,  for  I  am  a  brevet  printer  ?  How  nearly  my  thought  has  been 
fulfilled  you  will  know  when  you  are  reminded  of  who  filled  the 
chair  for  four  years  previous  to  our  Dr.  Dadd. 

Boylike,  in  my  eariy  rambles,  I  became  familiar  with  many  of 


WATERFEONT  AND  SHIPPING  65 

the  craft  plying  into  this  port  and  in  my  desire  to  retain  a  memory 
of  them  I  kept  a  record  of  their  movements  in  the  season  of  1854. 
This  marine  list  I  give  verbatim  with  the  following  facts: 

"Port  opened  March  2nd  and  closed  December  15th.  Number 
of  schooners  launched,  7.  No  other  vessels  built.  Number  of  ves- 
rels  arrived,  193,  which  shows  an  increase  of  14  over  last  season. 
Each  vessel  is  a  different  one."  In  detail  these  craft  were  89 
schooners,  26  brigs,  10  barks,  40  props.,  17  steamers  and  1  sloop. 

My  old  yellow  manuscript  gives  the  full  list  of  these  ships  with 
the  name  of  their  hailing  ports  and  their  masters. 

You  will  notice  that  I  called  the  season  open  when  the  first 
craft  left.  We  didn't  wait  for  the  straits  to  thaw  out  for  we  placed 
considerable  stress  on  the  local  trade.  There  were  no  eastern  con- 
nections by  rail.  We  have  no  opening  now  for  our  steamers  run  all 
Winter. 

The  brigs,  barks,  sloops  and  side-wheel  steamers  have  all  gone  to 
their  rest  and  the  schooner  or  steam-barge  now  does  the  bulk  of  our 
work. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  mentioning  some  of  those  old  ships  for 
you  will  be  reminded  of  these  jolly  good  craft  as  they  are  brought  to 
mind. 

The  only  sloop  that  hailed  from  here  was  the  Ole  Bvll,  Captain 
Larsen.  She  was  a  clinker  built  boat  much  like  an  overgrown 
double-ender  Norwegian  fishing  boat.  She  broke  from  her  moor- 
ings one  gusty  night  and  drifted  into  the  lake  and  retired  to  Davy 
Jones'  locker.  Only  two  full-rigged  brigs  existed,  the  Robert  Burns 
and  the  Algondh.  They  were  black  chunky  craft,  in  all  respects  old 
style.  Although  not  lost  here,  the  Algonah  went  ashore  here  on 
the  Third  ward  beach  and  laid  high  enough  on  the  sand  for  me  to 
walk  around  her  dry-shod  after  the  subsidence  of  old  Michigan. 
The  cause  of  her  going  ashore,  according  to  legend,  was  the  regular 
disappearance  of  the  one  candle  in  a  designated  shanty  in  the  old 
Third.  A  jolly  party  in  the  said  shanty  could  not  get  their  "drop 
of  the  crater"  except  they  went  into  the  cellar  to  get  at  their  source 
of  supply,  and  such  was  the  regularity  of  their  trips  below  that  the 
brig's  master  mistook  the  flashes  for  a  revolving  light  and  thus  his 
misfortune. 


66  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Among  the  schooners  are  Congress,  Captain  Doyle;  Eliphalet 
Cramer,  Captain  West;  D.  0.  Dickinson,  Captain  Lewis;  Kitty 
Grant,  Captain  Johnson;  Fred  Hill,  Captain  Adlam,  and  Norway, 
Capt.  Tate.  These  three  last  were  of  nearly  one  pattern  of  a  modem 
cut  and  were  built  on  the  site  just  north  of  Wolf  &  Davidson's.  The 
C.  Harrison  was  another  familiar  craft  to  me,  and  is  yet  in  commis- 
sion. I  saw  her  when  she  wedded  Neptune.  She  was  the  first  craft 
I  ever  saw  launched.  She  dipped  the  water,  stem  first,  at  the  east 
end  of  Oneida  Street  bridge,  where  the  wood  yard  is  now.  The 
next  craft  I  saw  introduced  to  the  water  was  the  top  sail  schooner 
H.  K.  White,  which  slid  diagonally  into  the  river  from  the  foot  of 
Fowler  street. 

So  closely  united  is  the  history  of  our  marine  with  the  men  of 
those  times  that  I  mention  a  few  more  vessels.  For  instance,  in  my 
list  I  find  the  Josephine  Lawrence,  Captain  Saveland;  Lewis  Lud- 
ington.  Captain  Mclntyre;  Milwaukee  Belle,  Captain  Lewis;  Dan 
Newhall,  Captain  Waffle;  Republic,  Captain  Cross;  J.  &  A.  Stron- 
ach.  Captain  Corbett,  and  the  Napoleon,  Bennett,  master. 

Captain  Adlam,  of  the  schooner  W.  B.  Hibhard,  died  last  month 
[June,  1888].     His  craft  was  one  I  have  on  my  list. 

The  Napoleon  seems  to  have  outlived  all  her  consorts  for  she 
was  in  commission  until  last  Summer  when  she  went  on  the  beach 
down  the  lake.  The  Eepublic  was  the  first  to  adopt  the  patent 
double-threaded  screw  steering  wheel.  Previous  to  this  steering  was 
done  with  a  tiller  or  at  best  with  a  wheel  tackle. 

All  the  three-masted  schooners  were  called  barks.  The  Badger 
State,  Captain  Shorts,  was  the  most  familiar  to  me.  I  saw  her  bap- 
tized in  the  placid  Menomonee  just  west  of  Reed  street  where  the 
sheds  of  the  Western  Transportation  Company  now  stand.  Many  a 
time  I  have  seen  her  burgee  flying  from  her  peak  as  she  lay  at 
anchor  outside  waiting  for  a  tug  as  all  the  larger  vessels  had  to  do ; 
and  in  referring  to  the  larger  class  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  ship- 
ping has  changed  radically  in  thirty  years.  A  good  sized  schooner 
in  1855  took  aboard  only  18,000  to  20,000  bushels  of  grain  in  con- 
trast now  with  60,000  or  70,000  or  even  100,000. 

Another  bark  that  attracted  attention  at  this  time  was  the  Great 
West,  possibly  of  500  or  600  tons.    At  all  events  she  looked  big  and 


WATERFRONT  AND  SHIPPING  67 

her  owner  thought  she  was  immense  for  she  had  a  steam  engine  on 
deck  to  make  sail  and  break  bulk.  One  more  man  tried  steam.  He 
put  a  screw  in  and  proposed  to  do  his  own  towing,  but  it  did  not 
work.  You  may  never  have  heard  of  this  man,  but  it  was  "Old 
Kirb,"  and  his  ship  was  the  Cream  City.  Although  he  only  intended 
to  drive  her  in  port  or  in  the  rivers,  by  steam,  yet  I  am  not  so  sure 
but  we  might  call  him  the  father  of  steam  barges.  (I  am  the  pos- 
sessor of  her  flag,  given  the  Cream  City  Ball  Club,  by  Captain  Fitz- 
gerald, 1870.) 

At  the  head  of  Wisconsin  street  the  bluff  was  as  high  as  it  yet  is 
at  the  Juneau  statue  and  on  the  summit  beside  the  brick  light- 
house was  a  shanty  where  hotel  runners,  glass  in  hand,  watched  and 
waited  for  the  appearance  of  passenger  boats.  The  iron  horse  had 
not  reached  us  and  these  steamers  came  with  fair  regularity  and 
were  watched  for  with  interest,  especially  from  below.  When  they 
hove  in  sight  and  were  recognized,  these  watchmen  took  to  their 
heels  to  advise  the  hotels,  which  in  turn  would  scurry  and  bob  away 
to  the  pier  to  solicit  patronage  from  homeseekers  and  pilgrims 
bound  for  this  great  unknown  country. 

Those  scenes  are  all  gone  now.  Huron  and  Erie  streets  were  the 
great  thoroughfares  then  and  they  have  improved  but  little  in  forty 
years,  for  the  people  who  floated  up  and  down  those  streets  to  see 
and  do  business  with  these  wheezy  puflBng  old  steamers  have  other 
paths  to  tread  now.  Besides  these  piers  the  only  other  notable 
landing  place  was  at  foot  of  Washington  street,  where  the  old  yel- 
low warehouse  stood.  This  place  was  used  especially  in  heavy 
weather  when  the  swell  was  too  boisterous  in  the  bay. 

Referring  to  these  puffy  old  side-wheelers,  let's  recall  just  a 
few  of  them  who  hauled  in  here  in  1854,  For  instance,  the  steamer 
Arctic,  Captain  Jones;  Cleveland,  Captain  Robinson;  Fashion,  Cap- 
tain Newbre;  Globe,  Captain  Pratt;  Lady  Elgin,  Captain  Chamber- 
lain ;  Pacific,  Captain  McQueen ;  Sultana,  Captain  Appleby,  and  the 
Traveler,  Newbre,  master. 

In  the  propeller  line,  only  one  was  built  in  this  decade  (date 
1856),  which  was  the  Allegheney.  Other  screw-boats  landing  here 
in  the  year  of  my  record,  viz.,  1854, 1  will  mention  only  the  Buffalo, 
Captain  Conkey;  Bucephalus,  Captain  Alexander;  Dunkirk,  Cap- 


68  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

tain  Hathaway;  Forest  City,  Captain  Pheatt;  Granite  State,  Cap- 
tain Cadwell;  Illinois,  Captain  Dixon;  Milwaukee,  Captain  Mars- 
den;  Pocohontas,  Captain  Clark,  and  the  Sun,  Captain  Anderson. 

In  1856  we  tried  the  experiment  of  shipping  grain  direct  to 
Europe.  Laden  with  wheat  the  schooner  Dean  Richmond  sailed 
direct  with  considerable  flourish  of  trumpets.  One  or  two  boats  fol- 
lowed in  a  year  or  two  with  grain  and  products  of  the  forest,  but 
the  ventures  established  no  permanent  trade. 

Another  epoch  was  the  arrival  of  a  tow-boat.  The  tug  G.  W. 
Tifft  was  the  pioneer,  putting  in  an  appearance  about  1853.  Fre- 
quently I  saw  her  with  five  or  six  and  even  seven  little  hookers  toil- 
ing up  the  undefined  course  of  the  old  river.  She  took  her  own  time 
for  sharp  competition  was  yet  to  come.  Soon  after  this  the  straight 
cut  was  opened,  making  it  much  easier  for  little  craft  to  make  port 
and  sail,  perhaps,  directly  to  her  dock.  At  this  time  came  those 
wonderful  creations,  the  steamships  Detroit  and  Milwaukee,  to  do 
us  duty  across  the  lake,  giving  us  close  and  comfortable  passage 
across  old  Michigan.  Simultaneously  came  the  blast  from  an  iron 
horse  which  had  crept  up  from  the  south'ard  and  found  a  temporary 
stopping  place  at  the  spot  now  called  Bay  View,  from  whence  pa&- 
sengers  came  citywards  across  the  marsh  on  scows  towed  by  our  one 
all-important  tug  which  landed  baggage  and  passengers  at  foot  of 
National  avenue  where  the  Milwaukee  &  Chicago  Eailroad  erected 
a  station  which  was  their  only  one  for  many  years. 

Shipbuilding  progressed  fairly  with  us,  but  our  facilities  for  re- 
pairs were  for  many  years  decidedly  limited.  Away  back  in  1847 
we  had  a  floating  dock  and  later  a  marine  railway,  but  the  first  ap- 
proved dry  dock  was  made  in  1877  by  our  present  ship  builders. 
Wolf  &  Davidson. 

Those  were  halcyon  days,  my  hearer.  Mayhap  a  clear  conscience, 
a  sound  stomach  and  a  robust  corpus  of  a  lad  in  his  teens  has  much 
to  do  in  giving  a  roseate  hue  to  the  mazy  past.  Perhaps  so,  but  we 
were  not  hampered  with  as  many  set  forms  and  ceremonies  in  those 
good  old  days.  Caste  was  not  as  apparent,  we  were  all  nearer  to  be- 
ing peers,  and  aside  from  these  reasons  who  will  reproduce  our  old 
and  immaculate  stamping  grounds?    Where  are  the  fish  and  fish- 


WATERFRONT  AND  SHIPPING  69 

ing,  where  the  sloping  grassy  banks,  where  the  diving  holes  and  the 
spring-boards  where  we  could  disport  unobserved  in.  all  hours  of  the 
day,  up  and  down  either  of  our  rivers  or  on  the  lake  front?  Where 
are  our  boating  parties  and  picnics  on  the  limpid  stream  whose  bot- 
tom could  be  seen  on  any  clear  day  ?  Where  are  they  ?  Go  ask  the 
gray-beard;  go  ask  the  sickly  streams  that  smell  rank  to  heaven. 
Seek  your  answer  in  our  solid  docks,  and  ask  our  omnipresent  sewer 
and  our  contaminated  lake  and  our  forbidding  sea-walls,  and  as  your 
mind  is  of  a  retrospective  bias,  remember  the  old  adage :  True  yes- 
terday, true  today,  true  for  tomorrow. 


Milwaukee,  July,  1888. 


A  Sailor's  Narrative 

Condensed  from  Papers  Read  Before  the  Club  by  Captain  William 

Callaway. 

I  was  bom  at  Portishead,  England,  near  Bristol,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Bristol  Channel,  and  was  attracted  to  the  free  life  of  the  sea 
as  far  back  as  I  can  remember.  My  father  was  an  officer  in  the 
British  customs  service,  and  three  of  my  uncles  were  pilots  on  the 
Bristol  Channel.  While  I  am  unable  to  vouch  for  the  truth  of  the 
report,  it  was  said  that  my  great  uncle,  a  certain  Edward  Callaway, 
piloted  John  Paul  Jones  into  the  Bristol  Channel  during  the  Eevo- 
lutionary  War — at  the  point  of  a  pistol.  My  father  died  when  I 
was  but  ten  years  of  age,  and  at  fifteen  I  informed  my  mother  that 
I  was  going  to  sea,  threatening  to  run  away  unless  she  granted  her 
permission. 

I  made  my  first  voyage  in  the  Spring  of  1846  in  the  bark  British 
Queen,  bound  from  Bristol  to  Quebec,  with  railroad  iron.  She  was  a 
ship  of  perhaps  five  hundred  tons  register.  The  voyage  out  was  un- 
eventful until  we  reached  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  where  we  got 
into  a  field  of  ice.  After  getting  free  from  the  ice  we  ran  into  a 
gale  of  wind  blowing  down  the  gulf,  and  were  obliged  to  take  a  reef 
in  our  topsails.  During  a  dark  night  we  collided  with  another  bark, 
and  you  may  imagine  with  our  cargo  of  iron  most  of  us  thought  our 
chances  of  getting  to  Davy  Jones'  locker  were  pretty  good.  The 
two  ships  were  thrown  together  by  the  sea,  and  we  broke  our  stud- 
ding-sail booms ;  the  yard-arms  came  tumbling  down  about  us,  and 
our  shrouds  on  the  port  side  were  carried  away.  During  the  excite- 
ment which  prevailed  at  the  time,  I  jumped  on  the  rail  to  get  aboard 
the  other  vessel.  A  big  sailor  caught  me  by  the  seat  of  my  pants 
and  threw  me  back  on  deck.  We  got  clear  of  the  other  vessel  finally, 
without  further  damage,  and  were  one  man  ahead;  for  while  we 
were  rolling  together  one  of  the  men  from  the  other  ship  got  hold  of 
our  ropes  by  mistake  and  was  drawn  aboard. 

We  reached  Quebec  in  about  eight  or  ten  days,  and  found  the 
ship  we  had  collided  with  ahead  of  us.  One  of  their  boats  came 
alongside,  and  their  men  were  overjoyed  to  find  their  shipmate  in 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  71 

safety.  We  were  in  Quebec  about  three  weeks.  Our  cargo  was  un- 
loaded into  barges  to  go  up  the  river,  and  we  loaded  timber  to  take 
back.  After  leaving  Quebec,  we  had  a  safe  passage  home,  but  at 
the  end  of  the  voyage  I  had  an  accident  which  nearly  finished  me. 
I  fell  eighteen  feet  into  the  hold  of  the  ship,  and  was  picked  up  for 
dead,  but  recovered  in  a  few  days.  It  was  rather  a  strange  coinci- 
dence, as  my  father  met  his  death  by  falling  in  the  hold  of  a  ship  at 
the  same  dock.  I  made  several  trips  to  Quebec  after  this  one,  but 
will  go  on  now  to  my  trip  around  the  world. 

In  the  early  50's  I  shipped  from  Bristol  on  a  little  bark  called 
the  Kyle,  boimd  for  Melbourne,  Australia.  She  was  of  five  hundred 
tons  burden  and  carried  a  crew  of  twenty  men.  We  had  on  board 
120  passengers,  most  of  them  bound  for  the  gold  diggings,  discov- 
ered about  this  time,  and  two  stowaways  who  were  found  after 
we  had  got  out  to  sea.  There  was  the  usual  ceremony  of  receiving  a 
visit  from  Neptune  when  we  reached  the  equator.  After  crossing 
the  equator  we  ran  into  St.  Paul's  Island.  The  ship  was  then  put 
in  course,  running  down  the  southeast  trade  winds.  Our  supply  of 
drinking  wat«r  got  so  bad  at  this  time  we  were  compelled  to  hold  our 
noses  when  drinking  it,  so  our  captain  concluded  to  run  to  the 
island  of  Tristan  Da  Cunha,  south  of  Cape  Good  Hope,  for  fresh 
water.  When  we  neared  the  island  the  wind  was  blowing  a  gale,  so 
we  had  to  put  off  for  Cape  Good  Hope.  I  was  taken  ill  at  this  time 
with  a  serious  fever,  and  had  to  have  my  head  shaved. 

We  ran  into  Table  Bay  at  Cape  Good  Hope  and  took  on  fresh 
water.  The  first  land  we  sighted  after  leaving  the  Cape  was  St. 
Paul's  Island  and  Amsterdam  Island,  both  of  them  very  small — 
apparently  about  ten  miles  long — and  I  do  not  think  they  were  in- 
habited at  this  time,  as  I  saw  no  houses  or  smoke.  The  food  we  had 
to  live  on  was  sufiBcient  warrant  against  dyspepsia.  On  Monday  we 
had  pork  and  pea  soup  for  dinner;  Tuesday,  salt  beef  and  rice; 
Wednesday,  salt  pork;  Thursday,  salt  beef  and  duff;  Friday,  pork 
and  pea  soup;  Saturday,  salt  beef  and  rice;  Sunday,  salt  beef  and 
duff.  We  also  had  all  the  sea  biscuits  we  wanted.  When  we  were  in 
the  tropics  maggots  got  into  the  biscuits,  and  we  were  obliged  to 
break  them  over  our  knees  and  shake  out  the  maggots  before  eating. 
We  were  served  with  tea  and  coffee  as  long  as  the  supply  lasted,  and 


72  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

got  lime  juice  every  day  as  a  preventive  of  scurvy.  Our  food  was 
brought  to  us  by  the  boys  whose  duty  was  also  to  keep  the  forecastle 
clean.  We  did  not  have  table  linen  and  silver  knives  and  forks. 
Each  man  had  his  pannikin,  tin  plate,  tin  spoon  and  knife  and  fork. 
The  food  was  brought  down  to  us  in  kids,  and  each  man  helped  him- 
self, our  forecastle  floor  answering  for  table  and  tablecloth. 

On  our  ship  "Grog-0 !"  was  always  called  when  we  got  through 
shortening  sails.  The  next  land  we  made  after  Amsterdam  Island 
was  Cape  Leeuwin,  Australia.  A  few  days  later  we  made  Melbourne 
Heads,  and  then  dropped  anchor  in  the  bay.  There  were  no  docks 
for  ships  to  go  alongside  of  and  not  enough  water  in  the  river  for 
large  ships  to  go  up,  so  we  were  obliged  to  unload  our  cargo  into 
lighters.  The  people  were  coming  to  Melbourne  so  fast  there  was 
not  rocnn  enough  in  the  town.  Tents  were  pitched  on  the  hill  across 
from  the  city  and  the  hill  called  Canvastown.  The  town  had  its 
liquor  stores,  butcher  shops  and  stores  of  every  description.  It  was 
a  grand  sight  on  a  sunny  day  to  see  Melbourne  on  the  one  side  and 
Canvastown  with  its  sea  of  white  tents  on  the  other.  Our  crew  got 
the  gold  fever,  and  all  but  the  carpenter  and  myself  ran  away.  Run- 
away sailors  were  arrested  when  caught.  There  were  so  many  mis- 
creants there  was  not  enough  room  for  them  in  the  prisons,  so  the 
authorities  bought  a  ship  called  the  Deborah  and  anchored  it  in  the 
bay  for  a  sailors'  prison.  It  was  the  custom  to  shave  the  heads  of 
the  prisoners,  and  I  had  a  rather  unpleasant  experience  one  day 
while  in  a  butcher  shop.  A  man  greeted  me  and  offered  to  shake 
hands,  and  when  I  said  I  did  not  know  him,  he  said :  "Of  course 
you  do ;  you  were  in  the  Deborah  when  I  was  there."  My  hair  was 
still  short,  and  I  suppose  this  accounted  for  the  mistake. 

We  shipped  a  new  crew  at  Melbourne  and  went  to  New  Castle, 
about  ninety  miles. north  of  Sydney,  on  the  river  Hunter.  There 
was  only  one  small  mine  there  at  the  time,  but  I  understand  now 
they  are  shipping  coal  from  there  to  San  Francisco.  The  mine  had 
a  capacity  of  only  600  tons  per  month,  and  as  there  were  ships  ahead 
of  us  we  had  to  wait  six  months  for  a  cargo.  All  hands  but  the 
carpenter  and  myself  were  discharged,  and  I  acted  as  cook  and 
steward.  We  lay  across  the  river  opposite  the  little  town,  and  there 
was  a  tribe  of  natives  close  by.    Whenever  the  carpenter  or  myself 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  73 

wanted  amusement  we  would  give  the  chief  and  one  of  his  head  men 
a  few  glasses  of  grog  and  have  them  get  the  tribe  to  dance.  When 
I  visited  the  town  I  would  tie  the  boat  at  the  dock,  and  when  I  came 
back  it  would  be  filled  with  natives  waiting  to  cross  with  me.  I  al- 
ways made  them  welcome. 

I  made  three  trips  to  New  Castle.  On  the  last  trip  we  got  into  a 
hurricane,  or  southerly  buster,  as  they  call  it  there.  The  canvas  was 
blown  away  and  we  sprang  a  leak.  When  the  gale  was  over  we  bent 
extra  canvas  which  we  had  below  and  put  into  Sydney  for  repairs 
before  going  on  to  Melbourne.  Sydney  is  the  most  beautiful  har- 
bor in  the  world.  After  leaving  Sydney  we  encountered  a  strong 
head  wind  and  ran  into  Botany  Bay  for  shelter.  The  two  years  I 
had  signed  articles  for  were  now  up,  and  I  got  my  discharge  and 
sailed  for  home  on  the  ship  Seringapatam.  Our  homeward  voyage 
was  around  Cape  Horn.  We  arrived  safely  at  Bristol,  thus  ending 
my  voyage  around  the  world. 

My  next  trip  was  on  the  ship  Petrel,  bound  with  passengers  for 
New  York.  While  we  were  lying  in  New  York  harbor,  two  sailors 
from  the  Great  Lakes  who  came  aboard  to  spin  yarns,  told  us  what 
good  things  they  had  to  eat  on  the  lake  vessels.  They  said  they  had 
ham  and  eggs  for  breakfast,  two  kinds  of  meat  and  pie  or  pudding 
for  dinner,  and  hot  biscuits  and  cake  for  supper.  They  also  said 
that  when  they  wanted  a  drink,  all  they  had  to  do  was  drop  a  bucket 
overboard  and  draw  it  up  full  of  fresh,  cold  water.  I  thought  they 
were  awful  liars,  but  found  when  I  came  to  the  lakes,  after  making 
three  more  voyages  from  England  to  this  country  and  Canada,  that 
they  were  about  right.  I  came  to  the  Lakes  in  the  year  1857,  and 
started  my  career  as  a  fresh-water  sailor. 

In  the  Spring  of  1857  I  had  shipped  from  Bristol  in  the  ship 
Jane,  bound  to  Quebec  with  passengers.  I  worked  my  passage  out, 
rather  than  follow  the  usual  custom  of  securing  a  month's  advance 
in  wages  when  shipping  and  then  running  away  after  reaching  this 
country.  Nothing  of  interest  occurred  on  my  trip  to  Quebec,  and  we 
landed  our  full  load  of  passengers  in  safety.  I  stayed  with  the  ship 
and  helped  imload  and  reload  with  timber,  and  secured  as  much 
money  that  way  as  I  would  had  I  taken  the  month's  advance  and 
run  away.    I  then  went  to  Kingston  and  shipped  on  a  vessel  named 


74  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

the  Liverpool,  bound  for  the  river  St.  Clair  to  load  timber.  I  went 
across  the  river  to  the  vessel  in  a  boat,  and  was  surprised  when  I  got 
on  board  to  see  two  horses  secured  forward.  I  was  informed  that 
they  were  used  in  loading  timber  and  also  that  the  vessel  steered  so 
wildly  when  loaded  that  it  was  necessary  to  have  their  assistance  at 
times  in  steering.  I  made  up  my  mind  that  that  kind  of  sailing 
would  not  suit  me,  and  left  the  ship  at  Detroit.  I  shipped  there  on 
a  little  schooner  named  the  C.  L.  Burton,  which  carried  only  about 
three  thousand  bushels  of  grain.  We  went  to  Sandusky,  and  carried 
grain  from  there  to  Buffalo  until  October.  I  then  shipped  in  San- 
dusky on  the  revenue  cutter  A.  V.  Brown,  and  came  to  Milwaukee. 

The  Brown  was  one  of  six  revenue  cutters  built  by  the  govern- 
ment in  1856  for  use  on  the  Great  Lakes.  There  was  one  for  each 
lake.  They  were  built  in  Milan,  Ohio,  and  when  finished  were  all 
taken  to  Sandusky  and  moored  close  together.  I  was  one  of  the  first 
sailors.  In  the  Spring  of  1858  they  were  ordered  to  ship  their  crews 
and  go  to  their  stations.  I  stayed  on  the  Brown  two  seasons,  and 
was  boatswain  before  I  left.  I  believe  she  was  the  first  government 
vessel  stationed  in  Milwaukee.  Her  commander  was  Captain 
Mitchell.    The  lieutenant's  name  was  Underwood. 

In  the  Fall  of  1858  we  laid  up  in  the  Menomonee  river,  about 
where  the  Sixth  Street  bridge  now  is,  alongside  a  clay  bank  on  the 
south  side*  of  the  canal,  and  the  pilot  and  myself  were  left  on  board 
to  keep  ship.  The  others  were  discharged,  and  the  officers  went  to 
their  homes.  Elevator  B  was  built  then,  and  the  Hans  Crocker  was 
moored  at  the  dock.  Captain  W.  Fitzgerald  was  her  master.  We 
became  quite  well  acquainted.  About  the  first  of  April,  1859,  the 
Brown  shipped  a  crew  and  we  lay  to  anchor  in  a  little  bay  just  inside 
the  piers,  somewhat  to  the  south.  We  used  to  go  from  here  to  differ- 
ent ports  on  Lake  Michigan — Racine,  Kenosha,  Chicago  and  St.  Jo- 
seph— and  stay  a  few  days  in  each  port. 

On  one  occasion  we  left  St.  Joe,  bound  for  Grand  Haven.  The 
wind  was  from  the  south.  We  got  out  into  the  lake  two  or  three 
miles,  then  wanted  to  set  the  squaresail  in  order  to  spread  the  sail. 
We  had  two  swing  booms,  which,  when  not  in  use,  would  lie  one  on 
each  bow.  I  told  the  men  to  square  them,  which  they  were  doing 
with  lifts  and  guys,  but  were  so  slow  that  I  jumped  on  the  rail,  one 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  75 

leg  on  each  side  the  boom,  and  was  lifting  it  square,  it  being  two- 
thirds  out  over  the  lake  and  one-third  in.  Someone  had  taken  the 
nut  off  the  gooseneck  that  went  through  the  saddles  on  the  mast. 
While  I  was  at  work  the  boom  let  go,  unshipped,  took  me  between 
the  legs  and  pitched  me  into  the  lake.  As  I  was  going  down  my  arm 
caught  on  one  of  the  guys.  I  grabbed  it,  but  had  all  I  could  dp  to 
hang  on,  as  the  vessel  was  going  about  five  miles  an  hour.  I  was 
hauled  on  board  all  right.  I  stayed  on  the  revenue  cutter  until  Fall, 
and  then  shipped  on  the  brig  David  Ferguson,  owned  by  William 
B.  Hibbard  and  commanded  by  Captain  Adlam. 

On  March  1,  1860,  I  married.  In  April  I  shipped  on  the 
schooner  William  Case,  before  the  mast,  to  go  to  Oswego.  I  had  a 
salary  of  sixteen  dollars  a  month — small  wages  on  which  to  keep  a 
wife.  I  left  the  Case  at  Oswego  and  shipped  on  the  schooner  Morn- 
ing Light,  bound  for  Saginaw,  to  load  lumber  for  Chicago.  I  then 
came  home  and  shipped  on  the  schooner  George  Barber,  with  Cap- 
tain Nelson,  at  twenty  dollars  per  month.  In  those  days  the  crew 
had  to  load  and  unload.  Sometimes  we  would  leave  here  at  night 
and  be  in  Muskego  the  next  morning,  alongside  the  lumber  pile, 
load,  and  get  out  again  at  night.  I  stayed  with  him  until  Septem- 
ber. I  then  shipped  in  the  schooner  Whaling,  with  Captain  Kynas- 
ton.  My  old  friend  Andrew  Boyd  was  mate.  We  loaded  grain  at 
Higby's  elevator,  foot  of  Chestnut  street.  The  captain  told  us  to 
go  home,  as  the  weather  looked  bad  and  he  would  not  go  out.  The 
next  night  the  schooner  lady  Elgin  was  lost.  We  made  one  trip  to 
Buffalo.  After  our  return  I  shipped  in  the  schooner  Robinson  for 
Buffalo.  I  was  taken  sick  with  fever  and  ague,  left  the  vessel  and 
came  back  to  Milwaukee.  Then  I  went  to  work  in  Mr.  Trusloaw's 
wholesale  fruit  store  on  East  Water  street,  next  to  Greene  &  But- 
ton's drug  store.  In  1861,  while  fitting  out  the  schooner  Barber,  I 
was  again  taken  sick,  and  could  not  sail  all  Summer ;  so  I  worked  in 
the  store. 

In  the  Spring  of  1862  I  shipped  on  the  schooner  Stella,  owned 
by  Mr.  Goldsmith  of  Port  Washington  and  commanded  by  Captain 
Smith.  We  loaded  at  the  pier,  carried  wheat  to  Buffalo  and  came 
back  to  Milwaukee.  Charley  Millett,  the  mate,  said :  "Bill,  let  you 
and  I  buy  a  vessel  of  our  own."    I  asked  him  how  much  money  he 


76  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

had  and  he  said:  "A  hundred  dollars."  I  had  the  same  amount. 
Our  united  resources  did  not  seem  a  sum  that  would  go  far  toward 
the  purchase  of  a  vessel,  but  "where  there's  a  will  there's  a  way." 
We  started  out,  got  as  far  as  Division  Street  bridge,  and  there  saw 
a  small  schooner  called  the  Mariner.  We  asked  the  captain  if  he 
knew  of  a  small  vessel  for  sale,  and  he  told  us  the  Mariner  was  for 
sale  for  $850.  She  carried  twenty-one  hundred  bushels  of  wheat. 
The  owners  were  Peter  Hansen  and  Mr.  Backet  of  Sheboygan.  My 
father-in-law  kept  a  store  on  Wisconsin  street,  and  as  we  thought 
he  knew  more  about  business  than  we  did,  we  sent  him  to  Sheboy- 
gan to  see  the  owners.  The  owners  came  to  Milwaukee  the  next 
day,  and  we  bought  the  vessel  for  $850,  paying  $200  down  and  giv- 
ing our  notes  for  the  balance — $100  to  be  paid  each  month  for  five 
months  and  $150  in  the  following  July.  It  looked  rather  risky,  but 
we  paid  the  notes  as  they  came  due,  supported  our  families  and  saved 
money  besides,  after  which  we  sold  the  Mariner. 

When  I  was  in  the  store  I  became  acquainted  with  Otto  Wer- 
muth.  In  July,  1862,  I  met  him  on  Wisconsin  street,  and  he  said 
he  was  going  to  have  a  vessel  built  to  go  to  the  old  country,  and 
asked  me  if  I  would  superintend  the  building,  fit  her  out  and  take 
her  across  the  ocean.  I  thought  he  was  only  "blowing,"  but  an- 
swered "Yes."  When  he  told  me  to  go  to  Ellsworth  &  Davidson's 
shipyard  and  tell  them  what  kind  of  vessel  was  suitable  for  crossing 
the  ocean,  I  wanted  to  back  out,  but  he  would  not  listen  to  it.  I  had 
never  superintended  the  building  of  a  vessel,  and  was  not  thorough 
in  navigation,  but  after  I  had  consented  was  determined  to  "see  it 
through."  I  went  to  Ellsworth  &  Davidson  and  asked  them  to  make 
a  model,  which  they  did.  I  made  another  lake  trip,  and  when  I 
came  back  the  contract  was  signed,  and  the  vessel  was  to  be  finished 
by  November  1, 1862.  I  then  stayed  on  shore  and  fitted  the  rigging, 
having  it  ready  to  slip  over  the  mastheads  as  soon  as  they  were 
stepped. 

Besides  attending  to  the  business  of  vessel  building,  I  had  to 
study  navigation.  I  asked  Mr.  Ellis,  who  for  many  years  kept  a 
book  store  on  Wisconsin  street,  to  send  to  New  York  for  an  Epitome 
and  Nautical  Almanac.  Hearing  that  Mr.  Roche,  who  was  living  on 
Lyon  street,  near  where  Racine  street  now  is,  had  been  a  teacher  in 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  77 

the  British  navy,  I  made  arrangements  with  him  to  teach  me  naviga- 
tion. I  lived  on  Grove  street,  on  the  south  side.  I  would  go  home 
from  work,  get  my  supper,  then  walk  over  to  Lyon  street  and  back, 
as  there  were  no  street  cars  in  Milwaukee  in  those  days.  I  found  Mr. 
Roche  was  not  all  he  claimed  to  be,  but  he  could  see  into  the  ex- 
amples quicker  than  I.  At  length  I  concluded  to  study  at  home.  I 
filled  a  plate  with  molasses,  placed  it  in  the  back  yard,  for  use  as  an 
artificial  horizon,  and  each  day  with  its  aid  took  the  altitude  of  the 
sun  with  my  sextant.  By  November  1st  I  was  pretty  well  informed. 
The  vessel  was  finished  November  6th  and  laid  up  till  Spring.  Mr. 
Wermuth  went  to  Germany  with  his  family.  When  he  came  back  in 
the  Spring  I  had  the  vessel  already  loaded  with  wheat  for  Buffalo  at 
eleven  cents  per  bushel.  He  was  so  pleased  that  he  put  his  arm 
around  my  waist.  Then  he  pulled  a  gold  watch  out  of  his  pocket  and 
made  me  a  present  of  it. 

The  Hanover  was  built  just  west  of  Reed  street,  where  Elevator 
A  now  stands.  I  believe  she  was  the  first  and  only  vessel  built  in 
Milwaukee  that  went  from  here  to  Europe,  although  there  were  two 
other  vessels  that  made  the  trip  across  the  ocean  from  the  Great 
Lakes  before  she  did.  I  took  the  Hanover  from  here,  through  the 
Great  Lakes,  the  canals  and  the  St.  Lawrence  river  to  Quebec,  and 
from  there  to  Liverpool,  England.  From  Liverpool  I  took  her  to 
Brock,  on  the  River  Wieser  in  Germany.  She  was  sold  in  Brock  to 
parties  in  Hanover,  and  I  took  her  to  Guestemunde,  where  my  crew 
and  I  left  her.  I  returned  to  my  home  in  Milwaukee  about  October 
20th  of  the  same  year.  For  a  number  of  years  after  that  I  followed 
the  occupation  of  sailing. 

In  1865  I  was  master  of  the  schooner  Toledo.  I  left  Milwaukee 
about  the  13th  of  October  to  load  wood  at  Bode's  pier,  which  was 
six  miles  south  of  Manitowoc.  We  got  alongside  of  the  pier  about 
10  o'clock  in  the  evening,  took  the  foghorn  and  called  for  Mr.  Bode. 
We  then  went  into  the  woods  blowing  the  horn.  Blowing  the  horn 
was  the  signal  that  there  was  a  vessel  at  the  pier  which  wanted  men 
to  help  load.  We  got  loaded  about  7  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the 
15th.  It  commenced  blowing  a  gale  from  the  southeast.  I  ran  to 
Manitowoc  Bay  and  came  to  an  anchor.  Several  other  vessels  were 
also  at  anchor  in  the  bay. 


78  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

We  could  not  get  into  Manitowoc  in  those  days,  as  there  were 
only  five  or  six  feet  of  water  in  the  entrance  to  the  river.  At  noon 
the  vessel  began  to  drag  her  anchor,  so  we  let  go  the  second  anchor. 
About  1  o'clock  the  small  anchor  chain  parted  and  we  were  dragging 
for  the  beach ;  but  I  did  not  want  to  go  on  the  beach  if  we  could  help 
it ;  80  we  pitched  off  the  deckload  even  with  the  rail,  close-reefed  the 
foresail  and  mainsail  and  got  a  slipline  from  the  starboard  quarter 
with  one  end  fast  to  the  anchor  chain,  so  as  to  cant  her  on  the  right 
tack.  We  then  slipped  the  chain,  when  she  filled  on  the  starboard 
tack.  When  about  a  mile  north  of  Manitowoc,  the  mainsail  blew  to 
pieces,  and  soon  after  our  staysail  went  the  same  way.  This  left  us 
only  the  foresail  to  get  off  a  lee  shore,  and  we  kept  getting  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  beach  all  the  time.  When  passing  Two  Rivers 
pier  we  were  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  off.  We  ran  along  in  the 
breakers  until  the  centerboard  began  to  touch  bottom.  Then  I 
thought  it  best  to  uphelm  and  run  her  on  the  beach  as  far  as  she 
would  go.  My  brother  was  standing  by  the  foresheet  when  the  fore- 
sail jibed  and  he  was  thrown  down  against  the  wood.  I  thought  he 
must  be  badly  hurt,  and  was  much  relieved  to  see  him  get  up  with- 
out assistance.  I  was  steering  and  could  not  leave  the  wheel,  but 
had  to  jump  to  save  myself  when  a  big  sea  struck  our  boat,  which 
was  hanging  on  the  davits,  threw  her  up  nearly  on  the  stem,  and 
then  fell  on  the  davits  with  such  force  that  she  broke  loose  and  went 
adrift. 

A  young  boy  named  John  Herzer  was  with  us  that  trip,  for 
health  and  pleasure,  and  as  I  did  not  know  at  what  moment  we 
would  ship  a  sea  that  would  carry  everything  before  it,  I  asked  my 
brother  to  get  a  rope  around  the  boy  and  tie  him  to  the  mainmast, 
as  he  did  not  know  enough  about  sailing  to  take  care  of  himself.  We 
were  in  a  bad  way,  for  our  boat  had  been  washed  away,  and  we  had 
no  means  of  reaching  shore,  and  the  sea  was  washing  over  us  all  the 
time.  We  should  most  likely  have  perished  by  morning  with  the 
cold  and  wet  if  some  men  had  not  brought  a  boat  down  to  the  beach 
in  a  wagon.  They  launched  the  boat  and  came  under  our  bow.  We 
crawled  out  on  the  bowsprit  and  dropped  one  by  one  into  the  boat, 
in  which  we  reached  the  shore  safely.  When  leaving  the  vessel  I 
went  with  the  boy,  my  arm  around  his  waist,  so  that  I  could  hold 
him.    This  placed  me  in  an  embarrassing  position  years  afterward, 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  79 

for  John  Herzer  grew  very  fleshy.  When  I  met  him  at  parties  he 
would  take  me  around  and  introduce  me  as  the  man  who  carried  him 
under  his  arm  to  the  boat.  He  then  weighed  some  three  hundred 
and  fifty  pounds,  and  I  about  one  hundred  and  thirty. 

To  go  back  to  the  wreck :  When  we  reached  the  beach  our  teeth 
were  knocking  together,  we  were  so  cold  and  wet.  The  rescuers  took 
US  to  Weilep's  hotel,  where  they  gave  us  some  whiskey  and  a  good 
supper.  We  were  all  tired  and  went  to  bed  early.  Two  of  the  men 
who  saved  us  were  John  Eggers  and  Moses  Bunker.  The  names  of 
the  other  two  I  cannot  recall.  There  were  six  wrecked  vessels  be- 
tween Manitowoc  and  Two  Rivers  point  during  that  storm. 

I  came  back  to  Milwaukee  to  secure  wrecking  tools.  I  got  them 
of  Cole  &  Harrison  and  put  them  on  board  the  steamer  Planet.  It 
blew  a  gale  from  the  northeast,  and  I  could  not  get  out  for  two  days. 
I  reached  Two  Rivers  on  a  Sunday  morning  and  went  down  to  look 
at  the  vessel.  She  was  in  a  sorry  plight.  She  was  partly  filled  with 
sand,  and  had  settled  down  so  you  could  get  on  board  dry-footed  by 
jumping  over  a  little  stream  by  her  side  that  the  current  had  kept 
open.  She  was  broadside  to  the  beach  and  had  listed  a  little.  The 
sand  was  level  from  the  top  of  the  rail  to  the  combings  of  the 
hatches.  Monday  morning  I  went  to  work.  I  put  eyebolts  in  her 
frames,  lashed  timbers  to  her  sides,  and  got  blocking  and  screws  set. 
As  the  beach  at  Two  Rivers  is  all  quicksand,  I  had  to  raise  the  screws 
eighteen  inches  in  order  to  raise  the  vessel  two  inches.  I  got  her 
up  forward  and  was  ready  to  put  ways  under  her  when  it  came  on  to 
blow,  and  all  the  blocking  was  washed  away  and  she  was  in  worse 
condition  than  before.  It  took  almost  two  months  to  get  her  up  and 
on  the  beach.  We  then  cut  her  in  two  and  hauled  the  bow  from  the 
stern  and  lengthened  her  twenty-seven  feet.  I  had  to  go  seven  miles 
into  the  country  and  there  buy  oak  trees  of  the  farmers.  I  had  to 
buy  the  trees  standing  and  make  bargains  with  the  farmers  to  cut 
them  down  and  haul  them  to  the  vessel.  I  then  had  to  get  whip- 
sawers  to  saw  the  long  plank  by  hand.  The  short  ones  were  sawed 
at  Mann  Brothers'  pail  factory.  I  engaged  a  carpenter  to  boss  the 
job  while  I  superintended  it.  We  got  her  ready  to  launch  b  3rthe  end 
of  May.  Then  the  carpenter  went  back  on  me  and  left,  so  I  had  to 
alunch  her  myself.     It  proved  a  difficult  task,  on  account  of  the 


80  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

quicksand ;  but  by  having  anchors  in  the  lake  and  purchases  to  the 
windlass,  we  got  her  off  to  an  anchor.  I  then  put  on  some  things 
that  had  been  left  on  the  beach  and  came  back  to  Milwaukee. 

Upon  my  return  to  Milwaukee  Mark  Tyson  chartered  me  to  go 
to  Manistee  to  load  lumber  for  Chicago.  I  continued  in  that  trade 
the  remainder  of  the  season  and  made  three  trips  between  Novem- 
ber 8th  and  13th.  For  the  first  trip  I  had  $7  per  thousand,  for  the 
second  $7.25,  and  for  the  third  $6.50.  For  the  first  trip  I  paid  my 
men  $36,  and  as  we  made  the  trip  in  five  days  the  men  thought  the 
next  trip  would  surely  be  a  long  one;  so  they  would  not  go  by  the 
trip,  but  asked  $4  per  day.  I  agreed  to  their  demand,  and  as  we 
made  the  trip  in  four  days  I  only  paid  them  $16.  I  mention  this 
to  show  the  difference  between  those  sailing  days  and  the  present. 

In  1867  I  again  ran  to  Manistee  and  carried  the  material  to 
build  the  lighthouse  on  Big  Point  Au  Sable.  We  anchored  off  the 
point  and  unloaded  onto  scows.  The  scows  were  then  hauled  to  the 
beach  and  unloaded.  The  same  Fall  I  was  windbound  in  Manistee 
with  many  other  vessels,  among  them  the  schooner  William  Jones. 
We  all  left  the  same  afternoon,  the  wind  being  southeast.  It  was 
raining.  When  off  Big  Point  Au  Sable  the  wind  shifted  to  the  west 
and  blew  a  gale,  and  we  had  to  carry  a  heavy  piece  of  cjuivas  in  order 
to  get  to  the  west  shore.  When  about  in  midlake,  at  daylight,  we 
saw  a  schooner  about  ten  miles  to  leeward  flying  a  flag  of  distress. 
I  up  helm  and  ran  down  to  her  and  found  her  to  be  the  William 
Jones,  waterlogged.  The  captain  asked  me  to  stand  by  her,  which  I 
did.  When  about  half  a  mile  away  from  him,  I  saw  him  waving  his 
hat  signaling  me  to  come  back.  I  wore  ship  and  got  to  leeward  of 
him.  They  lowered  their  boat.  Every  man  got  into  her  and  we 
hoisted  them  on  deck,  but  not  any  too  soon,  for  just  as  the  last  man 
came  on  board  our  vessel  their  vessel  rolled  over  almost  bottom- 
side  up,  and  most  likely  if  they  had  stayed  on  board  all  of  them — 
there  were  seven — would  have  been  drowned.  Being  loaded  with 
lumber,  the  Jones  did  not  sink.  We  made  more  canvas  and  ran  for 
Chicago. 

Perhaps  the  most  thrilling  event  of  my  life  was  the  wreck  of  the 
bark  Naomi,  on  November  5th,  1869.  We  were  windboimd  in  Man- 
istee on  November  4th,  the  wind  blowing  a  heavy  gale  from  the  south 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  81 

and  at  night  shifting  and  blowing  a  heavy  gale  from  the  west.  On 
the  morning  of  the  5th  one  of  the  men  went  on  the  pier  to  look  along 
the  beach,  and  saw  a  bark  about  six  miles  north  on  the  outside  sand- 
bar. Three  other  sailors  and  I  then  started  to  walk  along  the  beach 
to  the  scene  of  the  wreck,  but  were  soon  obliged  to  take  to  the  woods, 
as  the  heavy  sea  was  washing  up  against  the  clay  banks. 

When  we  got  within  closer  range  of  the  vessel  we  could  see  the 
crew  on  the  cabin  with  the  seas  washing  over  them.  Their  boat  was 
on  the  beach.  They  had  lowered  the  boat,  with  the  intention  of 
coming  ashore,  but  the  heavy  seas  filled  her  with  water,  and  she  broke 
adrift  and  came  on  the  beach.  The  breakers  pounding  the  boat  on 
the  beach  had  started  some  of  the  frames  from  the  planks  and  had 
shaken  the  oakum  out  of  the  seams  on  one  side.  One  of  the  men 
had  tried  to  swim  ashore  to  summon  help,  but  was  drowned  in  the 
attempt.  The  peril  of  the  men  on  the  wrecked  schooner  filled  us 
with  horror,  and  we  determined  to  make  an  effort  for  their  rescue. 

The  only  boat  at  hand  was  that  on  the  beach.  A  farmer  had 
brought  with  him  a  hatchet  and  some  nails.  We  turned  the  boat 
bottom  up  and  nailed  the  planks  to  the  frame  as  best  we  could.  The 
next  thing  was  to  find  something  with  which  to  caulk  the  seams,  and 
we  made  use  of  a  pair  of  old  pants  which  we  found.  A  lumberman 
by  the  name  of  Calkins  pulled  off  his  coat  and  tore  off  his  shirt- 
sleeves. We  tore  the  coat  into  shreds  and  filled  the  seams  with  them, 
using  our  knives  as  caulking-irons.  I  then  cut  a  piece  of  one  end 
of  the  painter  and  made  a  becket  through  the  ring  bolt  iu  the  stem 
of  the  boat,  to  keep  the  steering  oar  from  slipping  out  of  the  sculling 
notch  and  getting  away  from  me. 

By  this  time  quite  a  crowd  had  gathered,  among  them  sailors  and 
citizens  from  Manistee.  They  said  it  was  folly  to  attempt  a  rescue 
in  that  boat,  and  some  of  them  said  they  would  go  back  to  Manistee 
and  get  a  good  boat  and  bring  it  back  on  a  wagon.  They  did  this 
finally,  but  had  to  drag  the  boat  a  long  distance  through  the  woods 
by  hand.  I  knew  that  by  the  time  they  could  get  a  boat  from  Man- 
istee it  would  be  nearly  night  and  perhaps  all  of  the  crew  would 
have  perished.  Three  oars  and  a  pail  had  come  ashore  with  the  boat. 
I  got  together  a  crew  of  three  men  besides  myself,  two  to  row  and 
one  to  bail.  Two  of  the  men  were  Chris  Hansen  and  James  Gil- 
lespie, and  the  third  a  sailor  from  the  schooner  William  Heg. 


82  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

There  was  a  strong  current  running  south  along  the  beach,  and 
I  got  the  lookers-on,  who  had  grown  into  quite  a  crowd  by  this  time, 
to  partly  drag  and  partly  carry  the  boat  a  distance  to  the  north,  in 
order  to  allow  for  the  current  in  fetching  up  at  the  wreck.  Then  I 
got  them  to  run  into  the  water  and  push  us  afloat,  which  they  did 
willingly.  Our  boat  was  a  large  one,  about  eighteen  or  nineteen  feet 
long,  but  the  seas  were  so  high  that  she  nearly  stood  on  end  when 
pointing  out  through  the  breakers.  However,  we  kept  her  afloat, 
bailing  her  out  with  the  pail  as  fast  as  the  spray  came  over.  The 
first  sight  that  met  our  eyes  as  we  approached  the  wreck  was  that  of 
the  captain,  whose  name  was  Carpenter,  and  his  wife.  He  was  fast 
to  one  end  of  a  rope  passed  over  the  mizzen  boom,  and  his  wife,  who 
was  fast  to  the  other  end,  lay  dead  in  his  lap.  The  vessel  had  her 
top  sail  close-reefed  and  set.  Her  mainsail  also  was  close-reefed  and 
set,  and  the  main  boom  was  lying  on  the  rail  with  the  end  about 
eight  feet  from  the  side.  I  got  our  boat  under  the  end  of  the  boom, 
as  it  was  not  safe  to  go  closer  to  the  vessel  in  that  terrible  sea.  The 
men  on  the  wreck  came  along  the  rail  and  to  the  end  of  the  boom, 
then  dropping  into  the  boat.  Three  of  the  men  dropped  in  all  right, 
but  when  the  fourth  was  in  the  act  of  descending  we  shipped  a  sea  in 
our  boat  that  threw  us  from  under  him  and  he  fell  overboard.  The 
undertow  brought  our  boat  back  to  its  former  place  and  the  man 
came  up  alongside.  One  of  our  men  grabbed  hold  of  him  and  got 
him  into  the  boat.  As  soon  as  he  could  speak  he  invoked  heaven  and 
the  saints,  calling  down  upon  us  blessings  for  saving  him. 

Having  by  this  time  shipped  considerable  water,  we  were  obliged 
to  put  off  for  the  beach,  in  order  to  save  ourselves  and  those  we  had 
taken  from  the  vessel,  and  to  get  the  boat  in  trim.  If  we  had  shipped 
another  sea  it  might  have  been  the  end  of  some  of  us.  As  we  ap- 
proached the  shore,  the  men  on  the  beach  ran  out  into  the  water  and 
took  hold  of  the  boat  to  pull  her  onto  the  shore.  Two  of  the  men 
we  had  rescued  stepped  out  of  the  boat  and  dropped  down  as  if  dead, 
when  they  realized  that  they  were  saved.  The  people  on  the  beach 
had  built  a  fire  in  the  woods  back  of  a  sandhill,  and  carried  the  ex- 
hausted men  there,  wrapping  them  in  blankets  after  rubbing  them 
with  whiskey  and  giving  them  some  of  it  to  drink.  This  brought 
them  around  after  a  while.  The  crowd  wanted  me  to  take  some 
whiskey  too,  but  I  refused  to  have  any  until  I  got  through. 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  83 

We  put  our  boat  in  trim  again  and  pulled  her  up  the  beach  to 
our  former  starting  point,  but  when  we  were  ready  to  go  off  two  of 
my  boat's  crew  backed  out  and  would  not  risk  a  second  trip.  It  was 
some  time  before  I  could  find  two  others,  although  there  were  num- 
bers of  sailors  among  the  spectators.  I  succeeded  finally,  however,  in 
filling  my  crew,  but  do  not  remember  the  names  of  the  two  recruits. 
We  started  off  once  more,  but  had  got  only  about  half  way  to  the 
vessel  when  we  shipped  a  sea  that  nearly  half  filled  our  boat ;  so  we 
had  to  put  back  to  the  beach  to  get  the  water  out  and  the  boat  in 
trim  again.  We  once  more  got  our  boat  back  to  the  starting  point, 
ready  to  put  out  again,  when  the  two  men  declined  to  re-enter  her. 
It  took  some  time  to  get  two  others,  but  finally  we  did.  The  two 
who  agreed  to  fill  these  places  were  Captain  Hall  of  the  schooner 
Stronach  and  my  mate,  Gus  Janet.  Chris  Hansen  deserved  great 
credit,  for  he  stuck  by  me  all  the  time.  The  other  men  also  were 
worthy  of  praise,  and  deserve  credit  for  what  they  did. 

The  third  time  we  put  off,  we  reached  the  vessel  all  right  and 
got  the  boat  under  the  main  boom  as  before.  One  man  came  along 
and  dropped  into  the  boat  as  the  others  had  done.  Another  got  as 
far  as  the  mizzen  rigging,  when  his  strength  failed  him  and  he 
could  go  no  further.  He  stood  on  the  rail,  holding  on  to  the  rig- 
ging. I  got  the  boat  near  him  and  told  the  men  to  watch  their 
chance,  and  when  the  boat  was  on  top  of  a  sea  to  drag  his  legs  off 
the  rail.  They  did  so,  and  the  man  tumbled  into  our  boat  like  a 
thousand  of  bricks.  Moreover  he  was  not  hurt.  The  captain  now 
was  the  only  living  person  left  on  board,  and  he  was  unable  to 
help  himself.  I  asked  Gus  Janet  to  watch  his  chance  and  jump  on 
board  when  we  got  the  boat  alongside  by  the  mizzen  rigging  and 
were  on  top  of  the  sea.  The  only  way  he  could  have  saved  the  captain 
would  have  been  to  loosen  his  wife  and  throw  us  that  end  of  the 
rope,  and  then  pitch  the  captain  overboard,  so  we  might  haul  him 
into  the  boat.  Gus  got  aboard  all  right  and  did  all  he  could;  but 
at  such  times  it  takes  longer  to  do  things  than  at  others.  He  had 
loosened  the  wife,  but  before  he  could  accomplish  the  other  details 
we  had  shipped  so  much  water  that  I  saw  we  had  to  put  out  for  the 
beach  again.  I  did  not  want  to  leave  my  mate  on  board  the  wreck ; 
BO  I  got  the  boat  under  the  boom  and  called  to  him  to  come  aboard. 
He  came  along  the  boom  and  dropped  into  our  boat,  the  same  as  the 


84  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

others  had  done.  Then  we  started  for  the  beach.  Captain  Car- 
penter, I  presume,  thought  we  had  given  him  up.  He  cast  at  me 
a  look  I  shall  never  forget,  and  rolled  off  the  cabin  deck  between 
the  cabin  and  the  rail,  and  drowned.  It  had  been  my  intention  to 
get  the  boat  in  trim  and  go  off  again  and  fetch  him. 

We  reached  shore  safely,  but  my  arms  were  so  strained  they 
were  in  the  shape  of  a  bow,  and  I  could  not  straighten  out  my 
fingers  for  some  time.  This  was  because  of  the  prolonged  tension 
of  the  muscles  in  holding  the  steering  oar.  We  had  been  about  four 
hours  accomplishing  our  task.  We  then  walked  back  to  Manistee, 
and  found  that  the  editor  of  the  paper  there,  who  had  been  an  eye 
witness  of  the  rescue,  had  issued  an  *^extra"  giving  a  full  account  of 
the  affair.  When  I  came  back  home  after  this  trip  the  members  of 
the  Milwaukee  Chamber  of  Commerce,  to  my  surprise,  were  kind 
enough  to  present  me  with  a  gold  watch  and  chain.  Our  Milwau- 
kee Chamber  of  Commerce  at  this  time  began  an  agitation  for  life 
boats  on  the  Great  Lakes.  This  was  the  starting  point  of  the 
splendid  life-saving  service  we  have  on  the  lakes  today. 

In  1870  and  1871  I  was  master  of  the  schooner  Toledo  and 
was  in  general  trade  between  different  points  on  Lake  Michigan. 
In  1871,  the  year  of  the  Chicago  fire,  I  was  windbound  in  Holland 
Lake,  which  is  about  twenty  miles  south  of  Grand  Haven.  One 
Sunday  afternoon,  Mr.  E.  W.  Diercks,  who  was  later  registrar  of  the 
Milwaukee  Board  of  Health,  came  on  board  and  asked  me  to 
take  him  up  to  Holland,  six  miles  from  where  we  were  anchored. 
Mr.  Diercks  had  chartered  me  to  bring  a  load  of  railroad  ties  from 
Holland  to  Milwaukee.  I  ordered  two  men  into  a  boat  and  we  rowed 
him  to  the  little  town  of  Holland.  When  we  reached  there  we 
found  the  woods  on  fire  south  of  the  place  and  the  eitiens  fighting 
the  fire,  trying  to  save  their  town. 

Their  efforts  were  of  no  avail  for  that  night  every  house  was 
burned  to  the  ground — nothing  left  standing  but  a  stone  mill 
which  was  situated  on  a  point  of  land  at  the  head  of  the  lake. 
When  going  back  to  the  vessel,  we  could  hardly  breathe,  as  we  were 
to  leeward  of  the  fire,  and  the  smoke  was  dense.  The  next  morning, 
seeing  a  tug  taking  the  people  to  the  lake  shore  for  safety,  I  took 
the  boat  and  brought  many  of  them  to  the  vessel.  The  people  car- 
ried what  clothes  they  had  saved  on  board.  I  accommodated  as  many 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  85 

as  I  could  in  the  cabin  and  put  the  others  in  the  hold  to  stay  until 
the  danger  was  past.  Soon  after  this  I  loaded  the  ties  and  came 
back  to  Milwaukee. 

The  night  of  this  fire  was  the  night  of  the  big  fire  at  Chicago. 
That  same  fall  there  were  terrible  fires  in  the  northern  part  of  Wis- 
consin, and  many  people  were  burned  to  death.  Many  cattle  were 
also  burned,  and  the  fire  made  a  clean  sweep  of  many  farms,  de- 
stroying the  houses  and  killing  the  stock,  especially  in  the  country 
around  Ahnapee  and  from  there  to  Green  Bay. 

Relief  was  asked  for,  and  people  from  all  over  the  United  States 
sent  supplies.  A  committee  was  appointed  in  Milwaukee  to  receive 
the  supplies  and  ship  them  to  the  sufferers.  I  do  not  remember 
the  names  of  all  the  committeemen,  but  among  them  were  J.  A. 
Butcher  and  Col.  Turner.  The  committee  had  charge  of  chartering 
the  vessels  and  shipping  the  supplies.  They  appointed  Capt.  A.  J. 
Langworthy  to  go  to  Ahnapee.  He  was  to  select  a  committee  there 
to  visit  the  people  and  find  out  what  was  most  needed,  so  that  the 
supplies  might  be  distributed  accordingly.  As  there  were  no  rail- 
roads in  those  days  along  the  west  shore,  the  only  way  to  get  sup- 
plies to  the  burned  district  was  to  ship  them  by  vessel  or  send  them 
to  Green  Bay  by  rail,  and  from  there  thirty-six  miles  by  team. 

Col.  Turner  chartered  me  to  take  the  supplies  to  Ahnapee. 
"Winter  navigation  was  not  very  good,  and  it  was  no  easy  task  to 
find  a  vessel  captain  willing  to  go.  I  loaded  by  John  Eldred's 
shingle  mill,  where  the  North-Westem  railroad  bridge  now  is.  My 
load  consisted  of  everything  imaginable — furniture,  clothing,  bed- 
ding, stoves,  flour,  groceries,  hay,  feed,  and  so  forth.  We  arrived  at 
Ahnapee  safely  and  my  old  friend,  Capt.  Langworthy  was  there 
with  the  committee  to  receive  the  supplies  and  distribute  them. 

When  I  unloaded,!  came  back  to  Milwaukee  and  took  another 
load.  I  delivered  the  load  safely,  but  while  at  the  pier  the  wind 
blew  a  gaJe  from  the  southeast,  so  that  we  were  compelled  to  use  all 
the  ropes  and  chains  we  had  to  hold  the  vessel  to  the  pier.  Wlien 
the  gale  was  over,  we  loaded  wood  and  left  for  Milwaukee;  but 
before  reaching  here,  it  blew  a  gale  and  a  snowstorm  set  in  from 
the  northeast.  I  could  not  see  the  pier  light,  and  the  first  thing  I 
could  see  was  the  north  pier  on  our  lee  side ;  so  I  rounded  to  and  let 


88  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

go  the  anchor,  with  the  intention  of  trying  to  get  out  in  the  lake 
again.  We  got  up  anchor  and  cavorted  into  the  lake  all  right,  but 
the  center  board,  being  down  about  four  feet  and  frozen  into  the 
box,  touched  bottom  and  turned  her  around  against  all  head  can- 
vas, and  she  went  hard  and  fast  on  the  beach. 

As  the  sea  struck  the  vessel,  the  spray  would  fly  all  over  us,  and 
as  it  was  freezing  hard,  being  the  sixth  of  January,  we  were  soon 
covered  with  ice.  About  eleven  o'clock  at  night  we  managed  to 
get  the  boat  down  and  through  the  broken  drift  ice  and  reached 
the  pier  all  right.  I  then  lived  on  Grove  street.  I  got  home  as 
quickly  as  possible.  When  I  took  off  my  coat  and  pants  they  were 
frozen  so  hard  they  stood  up  alone. 

When  the  sea  went  down,  I  procured  wrecking  tools  and  put  a 
purchase  to  Lighthouse  pier,  unloaded  some  of  the  wood  on  the 
pier,  threw  some  overboard,  and  succeeded  in  getting  the  vessel 
off  the  beach  about  the  ninth  of  January.  As  there  were  no  tugs 
running  during  the  winter  in  those  days,  we  did  the  best  we  could 
with  hand  labor.  We  went  on  the  Wolf  &  Davidson  box  to  repair 
the  damage.  The  ice  was  a  foot  thick  from  the  piers,  so  we  had  to 
get  men  to  cut  it  with  saws.  This  took  some  time,  but  we  got  the 
vessel  repaired,  and  then  had  to  saw  our  way  back  to  the  shingle 
mill. 

We  put  on  another  load  for  the  fire  sufferers,  but  the  weather 
was  very  cold  and  the  ice  in  the  river  about  ten  inches  thick,  so 
we  were  not  able  to  get  out  for  about  three  weeks.  All  this  time  the 
people  were  suffering  for  want  of  the  supplies  we  had  on  board.  In 
those  days  there  were  only  the  Grand  Haven  boats  running.  If 
I  remember  correctly,  they  were  the  Ironsides  and  the  Lac  la  Belle, 
both  of  which  later  foundered.  These  two  boats  would  come  close 
alongside  when  going  out,  to  break  up  the  ice;  but  before  I  could 
get  the  vessel  around  the  cakes  would  freeze  again,  and  leave  me  as 
badly  off  as  before. 

After  a  time  we  got  a  northeast  gale  which  sent  in  a  sea  and 
broke  up  the  ice.  After  the  gale  the  wind  came  from  the  west 
and  carried  the  ice  out  into  the  lake.  I  then  sailed  for  Ahnapee 
and  arrived  about  a  mile  off  the  end  of  the  pier  at  daylight  one 
Sunday  morning,  when  the  wind  died  away.     I  had  the  boat  low- 


SAILOR'S  NARRATIVE  87 

ered,  and  towed  the  vessel  into  the  pier.  There  was  a  large  crowd 
of  people  on  the  pier,  and  I  shall  always  look  back  with  pleasure  to 
seeing  those  joyful  faces,  and  remember  the  way  they  received  us, 
with  shouts  and  cheers. 

As  soon  as  we  got  alongside  the  pier  we  began  unloading.  There 
was  a  string  of  teams  a  mile  in  length,  each  awaiting  their  turn 
to  load  what  the  relief  committee  allowed  them.  Of  course  there 
were  some  who  were  not  satisfied  with  what  was  given  them.  Some 
one  stole  a  bag  of  clover  seed  and  hid  it  behind  a  woodpile  on  the 
north  side  of  the  pier.  In  the  hurry  no  one  saw  the  trick ;  but  later 
I  happened  to  go  on  that  side  and  saw  the  bag.  I  reported  to  the 
committee.  That  night  they  watched  for  the  thief  and  caught 
him. 

Before  leaving  Milwaukee  I  agreed  with  Wolf  &  Davidson  to 
bring  a  load  of  ship  plank  from  Manitowoc.  I  arrived  there  on 
"Washington's  Birthday.  The  plank  was  piled  on  the  dock,  and 
was  long  heavy  oak.  The  vessel  was  very  shallow  in  the  hold,  be- 
ing only  seven  feet  six  inches  deep.  I  had  to  come  up  with  the 
mizzen  rigging  and  rig  tackles  from  mastheads  in  order  to  slide  the 
plank  down  the  main  hatch.  I  had  got  the  tackles  on  the  first  plank 
and  was  standing  on  deck  with  my  back  toward  the  hatch  and 
telling  the  men  how  to  work  it  when  the  plank  slid  toward  me. 
Not  thinking  about  the  open  hatch,  I  stepped  back  against  the 
combings  of  the  hatch  and  fell  into  the  hold,  a  fall  of  seven  and 
a  half  feet.  The  sailors  picked  me  up  for  dead  and  sent  for  a 
doctor,  but  by  the  time  he  came  I  had  recovered  consciousness.  He 
felt  me  all  over  but  found  no  broken  bones,  though  I  was  badly 
bruised  and  had  to  stay  in  bed  for  some  days.  One  Sunday  morn- 
ing I  left  Manitowoc  with  a  fair  northern  wind.  Before  I  was 
long  out  it  blew  a  gale,  so  that  I  had  to  be  on  deck  until  I  got  to 
Milwaukee.  Consequently  I  was  very  tired.  Next  day  I  went  down 
town  and  chartered  for  another  trip.  But  I  was  taken  very  sick 
from  the  fall  I  had,  and  could  not  leave  for  three  weeks.  Then  I 
delivered  the  last  cargo. 


Milwaukee's   First   Railway 

By  James  Seville. 

In  the  month  of  August  1846,  the  Steamer  Niagara  landed  in 
Milwaukee  at  Higby's  Pier  with  its  load  of  passengers,  immigrants 
and  merchandise,  etc.,  and  on  board  of  it  I  came  to  look  over  the 
great  northwestern  country  and  to  join  ia  with  the  multitudes  that 
were  seeking  new  homes  on  the  famous  soil  and  in  the  climate  of 
Wisconsin.  Fifty  years  ago  the  routes  from  the  east  and  south  were 
by  the  lakes  and,  of  course,  the  moving  tides  which  were  setting  in 
knew  of  no  other  avenues  only  by  the  lakes. 

At  this  time  the  Michigan  Central  railway  from  Detroit  was  in 
operation  as  far  as  Niles  in  the  state  of  Michigan,  and  the  idea  of 
reaching  the  head  of  Lake  Michigan  by  stage  line  was  not  to  be 
attempted.  This  will  account  for  the  rapid  settlement  for  the 
state  of  Wisconsin,  as  Milwaukee  and  the  country  around  it  had 
gained  a  reputation  for  its  fertility  and  climate  equal  to  any  state 
in  the  union,  at  any  time  in  the  history  of  the  country  at  large, 
either  before  or  since.  Its  magnificent  forests,  prairies  and  streams 
of  pure  water,  its  soil  producing  forty  bushels  of  wheat  to  the  acre, 
and  the  splendid  opportunities  for  the  establishment  of  new  homes, 
and  business  enterprises,  made  Wisconsin  the  very  Garden  of  Eden 
to  many,  as  was  evident  by  the  rapid  settlement  of  the  state,  brought 
about  by  an  enterprising  and  thrifty  population. 

Milwaukee,  unfortunately,  at  an  early  day,  became  factious  in 
itself.  The  east  and  west  sides  of  the  Eiver  became,  in  time,  divided 
into  parties  which  brought  about  the  "Bridge  War,"  and  in  this  the 
"South  Side,"  or  what  was  known  as  Walker's  Point,  held  the 
balance  of  power,  and  through  their  good  offices,  the  strife  gradually 
subsided;  but  as  late  as  1846  some  of  the  surrounding  ruins  of 
the  old  war  remained  which  in  time,  died  out. 

After  a  short  residence  in  the  city,  the  writer  found  there  were 
three  distinct  personages  within  its  bounds  who  held  a  commanding 
influence  in  the  advancement  of  the  general  interests  and  ad- 
vantages of  Milwaukee,  and  these  three  individuals  were, — first 


FIRST  RAILWAY  89 

Byron  Kilboum,  second,  Solomon  Juneau,  and  thirdly,  Bishop 
Henni  of  the  Catholic  Church.  To  Byron  Kilbourn  the  City  is  in- 
debted for  its  water-power  and  the  attempted  construction  of  the 
Rock  River  canal,  which  latter  was  abandoned.  He  also  planned  its 
railroads  and  was  the  originator  of  the  first  railway  of  this  city 
going  west.  Mr.  Juneau,  you  all  know  his  history,  but  in  regard  to 
Bishop  Henni,  I  presume  it  will  be  a  matter  of  interest  to  nearly 
all  of  you,  if  not  to  all,  that  he  was  the  only  Catholic  German  bishop 
in  the  United  States  at  that  time.  And  that  gives  you  the  key  to 
the  fact  that  the  population  in  your  city  and  north  of  you  is  so 
largely  German.  The  German,  before  leaving  his  native  land,  if  a 
Catholic,  would  feel  more  at  ease  and  more  comfortable  in  the  new 
country,  if  he  could  be  near  his  bishop  speaking  his  own  language, 
and  this  would  naturally  bring  others  of  their  friends  who  might 
be  non-Catholics  to  this  locality.  Whether  it  was  an  act  of  provi- 
dence in  placing  this  bishop  in  your  midst,  I  do  not  know,  but  a 
more  sincere,  gentlemanly  and  pleasant  and  good  Christian  I  never 
had  the  pleasure  of  knowing.  And  I  think  you  will  agree  with  me 
that  Milwaukee  has,  within  its  limits,  as  well  as  the  country  north 
of  you,  as  good  a  representative  lot  of  German  citizens  as  can  be 
found  in  any  part  of  the  United  States,  and  who  have  been  about  as 
successful  in  business  and  who  have  a  disposition  to  build  up  and 
sustain  the  City  in  all  its  interests  as  any  of  its  citizens.  So  much 
then,  for  the  good  future  Milwaukee  has  realized  from  the  location 
of  good  Bishop  Henni  in  your  midst. 

Now,  then,  gentlemen,  if  you  will  walk  with  me  to  a  house  on 
the  comer  of  Fourth  and  Spring  Streets,  (this  latter  name  for  old 
associations),  I  will  show  you  where  Milwaukee's  benefactor 
lived,  viz.,  the  Hon.  Byron  Kjlboum.  In  his  day,  he  was  one  of  the 
worst  abused  men  you  had  within  your  limits  and  the  real  cause  for 
it  all  was  that  he  was  the  leader  of  the  Rock  River  Canal  Company, 
and  was  determined  that  the  property  on  the  west  side  of  the  river 
should  be  occupied  and  improved  and  that  business  should  grow  and 
flourish  on  the  west  as  well  as  on  the  east  side  of  the  river.  The 
residents  and  business  men  on  the  east  side  were  not  on  the  best  of 
terms  with  the  west  side  owing  more  to  the  fact  that  the  east  side 
settler  was  of  Puritanical  stock,  the  west  side  was  largely  from  Ohio, 
and  the  south  side  was  more  of  a  mixture,  or  a  "don't  care"  kind 


90  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

of  an  individual  and  the  German  element,  but  self-interest  came 
in  to  the  rescue  and  caused  the  troubled  waters  eventually  to  calm 
dovna,  and  these  differences  gradually  subsided,  and  Mr.  Kilboum 
became  not  so  much  of  a  target.  It  is  said  that  "a  prophet  is  not 
without  honor  save  in  his  own  country,"  and  so  it  proved  to  be, 
for  from  the  time  of  his  coming  to  the  state,  no  one  became 
80  well  known  and  few  there  were  whose  opinions  had  more  in- 
fluence in  the  state  at  large,  than  Mr.  Kilboum.  He  could  do  more 
with  the  legislature,  governor,  etc.,  than  any  other  man  and  that  too 
without  any  seeming  effort  on  his  part.  He  was  a  man  of  large 
build,  a  large  head  and  brain,  a  skillful  engineer  and  just  such  a 
man  as  is  required  to  manage  large  enterprises;  sociable,  com- 
municative, benevolent  and  always  ready  to  engage  in  anything  to 
help  his  adopted  city. 

If  you  will  look  with  me  into  his  office,  which  was  a  part  of  his 
home,  I  will  show  you  a  large  map,  covering  one  side  of  the  wall. 
First  a  line  for  a  railroad  from  Milwaukee  to  Dubuque,  via  Wau- 
kesha, Whitewater,  Monroe  and  Galena.  Another  from  Milwaukee  to 
Prairie  du  Chien,  another  from  Milwaukee  to  La  Crosse,  another 
from  Milwaukee  to  St.  Paul,  and  these  roads  all  aiming  towards 
the  Mississippi  river.  Others  reaching  into  different  parts  of  the 
northern  parts  of  the  state.  This  map  was  made  in  the  year  of 
1847-8.  Look  again  and  you  will  see  that  all  these  roads  have  been 
built,  except  the  first  one,  and  that  one  has  not  been  built  to  this 
day,  and  nearly  all  the  others  do  not  have  their  starting  point  in 
Milwaukee  as  originally  intended. 

In  the  year  1846  Chicago  and  Milwaukee  were  considered  equal 
in  population  of  ten  thousand  inhabitants  and  Milwaukee  and  the 
state  of  Wisconsin  in  the  lead,  for  the  reason,  as  I  have  stated  before, 
that  the  means  of  travel  was  only  by  the  lakes,  and  Wisconsin  having 
such  excellent  reports  abroad,  she  gained  in  numbers  rapidly.  In  the 
meantime,  however,  the  Michigan  Central  railroad  was  pushing  its 
line  west  with  Chicago  as  its  objective  point,  and  in  1848  reached 
New  Buffalo  on  the  eastern  shore  of  Lake  Michigan,  a  point  directly 
opposite  Chicago.  As  soon  as  this  was  done,  E.  B.  Ward  of  De- 
troit, put  on  two  steamers  to  ply  on  the  lake  from  Milwaukee  to 
New  Buffalo  via  Chicago.  This  formed  a  daily  line,  but  it  was 
soon  seen  that  the  travel  aroimd  the  lakes  began  to  slacken  and  MiU 


FIRST  RAILWAY  91 

waukee  began  to  drop  off  in  its  newcomers.    Still,  its  commerce  did 
not  decay  nor  its  immigration,  until  later  on. 

Permit  me,  at  this  juncture,  to  deviate  from  the  main  object  in 
view  and  give  somewhat  in  detail,  one  of  the  interests  of  Milwaukee 
which  bid  fair,  at  one  time,  to  make  the  City  one  of  great  im- 
portance in  the  manufacture  of  iron  goods  in  its  various  phases.  On 
my  arrival  in  the  city  I  found  A.  J.  Langworthy  representing  the 
Wisconsin  Iron  works  on  the  water-power,  Turton  &  Sercomb  lo- 
cated on  West  Water  near  the  junction  near  Third  Street,  and  Mr. 
McCracken  on  West  Water  and  Wells  Streets.  These  establishments 
were  all  supplying  the  various  mills  being  built  in  the  state  with  ma- 
chinery for  grinding  wheat  and  sawing  lumber,  and  for  all  other  en- 
terprises requiring  machinery.  And  the  firm  of  Ludington  &  Co. 
were  agents  for  the  mill  furnishing  establishment  of  J.  T.  Noye  of 
Buffalo,  New  York.  All  these  concerns,  which  were  of  Milwaukee 
origin,  have  passed  out  of  existence  as  also  the  proprietors,  except  in 
the  case  of  A.  J.  Langworthy,  whom  I  believe,  is  still  with  you. 

In  looking  the  situation  over,  and  visiting  Chicago  and  making 
a  trip  from  there  to  Galena  and  from  there  back  to  Milwaukee,  by 
stage,  on  the  old  Frink  &  Walker  Line  of  stage  coaches,  gave  me 
some  idea  of  the  extent  of  country  tributary  to  Milwaukee. 

Entering  into  the  employ  of  Turton  &  Sercomb,  opportunities 
were  further  given  me  to  look  into  and  study  Milwaukee  and  its 
surroundings  as  a  place  of  investment,  not  only  for  the  present, 
but  for  the  future. 

In  the  early  part  of  1847  I  got  together  a  few  tamarack  poles 
from  a  swamp  in  the  second  ward  and  some  boards  from  Mabbett  & 
Breed's  lumber  yard  and  proceeded  at  once,  to  commence  the  erec- 
tion of  a  shop  for  the  manufacture  of  French  burr  mill  stones  and  to 
handle  all  kinds  of  grist  and  saw  mill  supplies.  This  was  all  done, 
building  completed  and  a  supply  of  materials  obtained  from  New 
York  and  actually  landed  on  the  ground  before  anyone  in  the 
city  knew  of  the  event.  Inquiries  failed  to  reveal  the  object  of  put- 
ting up  the  building  and  the  reason  for  this  was  simply  tiiat  in 
those  days  it  would  not  have  been  a  prudent  act  to  have  revealed 
the  object  in  view  as  the  whole  community  was  alive  and  on  the 
alert  for  any  opportunity  for  making  money  and  those  in  business 


92  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

were  in  constant  dread  of  any  competition.  This  condition  can 
be  accounted  for  in  the  fact  that  all  new  enterprises  were  supposed 
to  have  their  own  capital,  for,  if  they  had  not,  the  chances  were 
small  for  accommodations  at  the  banks;  because  all  the  capital 
they  had  was  consumed  by  those  handling  the  products  of  the 
country  at  large.  The  commercial  interests  were  the  paramount 
objects  in  view  by  the  banks  then  in  existence  and  anyone  having 
sufficient  nerve  to  go  into  manufacturing,  must  do  it  on  his  own 
resources  or  "bust."  Immediately  after  mill  stones  were  being 
made,  preparations  were  made  for  the  erection  of  buildings  for  the 
manufacture  of  machinery  for  all  classes  of  industry  which  might 
be  in  need  of  such.  In  due  course  of  time  suitable  facilities  were 
accomplished  and  the  Reliance  Works  of  Decker  &  Seville  unfurled 
their  banner  to  the  breeze  and  became  one  of  Milwaukee's  institu- 
tions. One  event  occurring  in  connection  with  this  concern  is 
worthy  of  note,  and  that  is  in  the  construction  of  the  machinery  for 
the  very  first  successful  steam  grist  mill  built  in  the  state  of 
Wisconsin,  which  mill  was  located  at  Berlin  on  Fox  river,  north  of 
your  city.  And  I  may  say,  in  this  connection,  that  the  successful 
problem  of  making  flour  by  steam,  had  not  been  solved  in  any  part  of 
the  United  States.  But  after  this,  and  the  exhibition  of  the  Corliss 
engine  at  the  Philadelphia  exposition  and  the  adoption  of  one  of  its 
principal  points,  the  same  as  promulgated  by  the  Reliance  works, 
the  manufacture  of  flour  by  steam  has  become  a  grand  success. 

Milwaukee  ought  to  have  credit  for  the  accomplishment  of  that 
principle  in  the  system  of  mechanics  which  the  Corliss  engine  has 
made  unanimous.  The  Reliance  works  was  located  on  West  Water 
Street  at  its  junction  with  Second  Street  or  opposite  the  Old 
Fountain  house,  and  through  the  revulsion  of  the  panic  of  1857 
and  the  breaking  out  of  the  rebellion,  the  establishment  passed  into 
the  hands  of  E.  P.  Allis  &  Co.  which  is  now  located  as  you  know  in 
the  5th  and  12th  Wards  and  is  enjoying  a  world-wide  reputation, 
and  of  the  old  owners  and  their  misfortune  in  losing  their 
hold  upon  it  I  may  have  something  to  say  in  the  future.  Al- 
most simultaneously  with  the  starting  of  the  Reliance  works  came 
into  existence  the  Menomonee  Locomotive  Manufacturing  company, 
succeeding  W.  B.  Walton;  the  establishment  of  Menzel  &  Stone 
and  that  of  William  Goodnow,  all  of  them  first  class  foundry  and  ma- 


FIRST  RAILWAY  93 

chine  shops.  But  of  these  three  concerns  only  one  remains,  and  that 
one,  I  think  is  known  as  the  Filer  &  Stowell  Manufacturing  com- 
pany. Mr.  Goodnow  left  the  city  and  I  cannot  now  say  where  he 
is.  The  Menomonee  Locomotive  Manufacturing  company  was  lo- 
cated in  the  swamp  about  two  blocks  south  of  the  Menomonee  bridge, 
about  opposite  the  large  brick  building  put  up  by  the  Bumham 
Bros,  for  John  Nazro  as  a  hardware  store  and  which  caused  his 
downfall  and  to  his  being  succeeded  by  John  Pritzlaff.  L.  L.  Lee 
was  the  far-seeing,  active  and  energetic  manager  of  the  Menomonee 
Locomotive  works,  for  no  sooner  had  the  Milwaukee  &  Mississippi 
Railroad  company  got  under  way  than  he  also  got  ready  to  supply 
the  company  with  the  locomotives  it  might  need.  A  more  industri- 
ous, self-confident  and  active  man  the  city  never  had  and  no  one 
worked  harder  to  build  up  the  city  than  he.  He  succeeded  in  get- 
ting out  one  or  more  locomotives  and  other  supplies  for  the  road 
which  were  all  acceptable,  but  Mr.  Lee  found  that  the  railroad  com- 
pany had  no  money  and  that  the  banks  had  none  for  manufacturers 
and  the  Menomonee  Locomotive  Manufacturing  company  had  none, 
BO  Mr.  Lee  had  to  suspend,  all  the  possessions  of  the  company  van- 
ished, and  soon  after  this  Mr.  Lee  died  and  the  company  became  a 
thing  of  the  past,  and  by  many,  entirely  forgotten.  Menzel  &  Stone 
also  closed  up  their  business,  both  parties  leaving  the  city.  I  do  not 
know  what  became  of  the  latter,  but  Mr.  Menzel  removed  to  Minne- 
apolis and  engaged  in  the  same  business,  made  himself  wealthy  and 
is  now  a  retired  manufacturer. 

Other  manufactories  have  sprung  up  in  your  midst  since  then, 
but  these  you  have  with  you  and  do  not  need  any  notice  from  me. 

One  more  topic  of  interest  and  I  must  then  divert  to  the  main 
subject  in  view.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  you  may  see  more 
plainly  why  the  Milwaukee  railroad  system  and  other  interests  were 
not  a  success  in  the  start,  and  why  Milwaukee  was  crippled  in  her 
energies  at  the  commencement  of  her  struggle  for  an  equal  share, 
at  least,  for  the  wealth  of  the  great  northwest.  Her  Banking  sys- 
tem consisted  then  of  the  Wisconsin  Marine  and  Fire  Insurance 
company,  which  was  then  a  branch  only  of  a  Chicago  house,  the 
State  Bank  of  Wisconsin  of  which  the  Cramers  were  the  principals, 
and  the  Farmers'  and  Millers'  Bank,  E.  D.  Holton,  Brodhead  and 
others.    At  this  time  the  commercial  interests  of  Milwaukee  were 


94  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

growing  rapidly  and  the  banks,  with  their  limited  means,  could 
not  look  after  the  wheat,  build  railroads  and  help  its  manufactur- 
ers, so  such  interests  had  to  suffer  which  were  most  dangerous  to 
its  capital.  A  loan  on  wheat  would  be  paid  as  a  collateral  would 
follow  the  loan.  With  the  railroad  there  would  be  no  telling  whether 
the  thirty  or  sixty  days'  earnings  would  show  any  balance  in  favor 
of  the  road,  and  with  the  manufacturers,  it  might  be  a  renewal  of 
a  year  or  more  of  notes.  The  banks  were  not  loaded  down  with 
eastern  correspondence,  consequently  had  limited  means,  and  if  any 
ruffle  on  the  wave  of  prosperity  came  along,  why,  the  first  ones  to 
suffer  were  the  manufacturers.  And  as  for  the  railroad  interests, 
they  were  not  in  the  race.  While  this  was  all  going  on,  of  which  I 
have  briefly  spoken,  there  was  one  man  in  the  city,  who  was  busy 
with  his  prolific  brain,  and  that  man  was  Byron  Kilbourn. 

Among  the  Solons  of  Milwaukee  at  those  times  of  which  we 
are  now  writing,  the  question  was  often  discussed  as  to  the  geograph- 
ical situation  of  Chicago  with  that  of  Milwaukee  and  which  of  the 
two  would,  in  the  future,  control  the  resources  of  the  great  west. 
And  in  the  eastern  states  the  question  was  also  discussed  whether 
the  railroad  interests  would  not  eventually  drive  the  vessel  interests 
off  the  great  lakes.  Unfortunately  for  Milwaukee  and  its  inter- 
ests, its  inhabitants  were  mostly  from  the  east  and  from  beyond 
the  great  ocean,  and  knew  but  little  of  the  country  lying  south, 
southeast  and  southwest  of  Chicago,  and  as  a  matter  of  course,  the 
decisions  were  mostly  in  favor  of  Milwaukee.  This  decision  was 
seemingly  supported  by  the  facts  that  Mr.  Ward  made  Milwaukee 
one  end,  or  starting  point,  for  his  line  of  boats  and  Chicago  a  way 
station,  Detroit  and  Milwaukee  line,  that  the  Goodrich  Steamboat 
line  was  an  established  institution  plying  between  Milwaukee  and 
Grand  Haven,  and  also  the  further  fact,  that  Chicago  was  not  at 
the  head  of  Lake  Michigan,  but  fifty  miles  from  it.  If  there  was 
ever  a  city  to  be  built  up  which  should  supercede  Milwaukee  it  must 
be  one  which  would  spring  up  at  the  immediate  head  of  the  lake. 
Now  with  this  condition  of  things,  it  is  no  wonder  that  Milwaukee 
was  ready  for  anjrthing  which  should  be  for  its  interests.  And  the 
plans  to  advance  these  interests  as  shadowed  forth  by  what  Mr. 
Ealboum  had  matured  in  his  mind  and  was  ready  to  place  before  the 
public,  met  with  unbounded  approval  in  all  things,  except  in  their 


FIRST  RAILWAY  95 

open  purses.  But  nothing  daunted,  he  said  that  Milwaukee  must 
have  a  railroad  through  to  Dubuque  at  once  connecting  Milwaukee 
with  the  Mississippi  river,  before  Chicago  got  one  to  the  same  river. 
He  said,  "look  at  my  map  of  railroads  I  have  laid  out  for  Mil- 
waukee and,  if  we  build  the  first  one,  and  get  to  the  river  first, 
Chicago  will  not  dare  to  approach  our  territory.  And  if  we  build 
this  first  road  to  Dubuque,  I  will  guarantee  building  up  our  Mil- 
waukee system  and  then  we  can  defy  the  world  to  come  between  ua 
and  this  great  northwest." 

Mr.  Kilboum  got  the  necessary  legislation  incorporating  the 
Milwaukee  &  Mississippi  Railroad  company  and  brought  the  road 
before  the  people.  And  what  was  the  result?  Why,  he  simply 
found,  that  to  succeed,  he  would  have  to  rely  upon  the  farmers  and 
property  owners  of  his  proposed  road.  You  will  probably  remem- 
ber the  fact,  also,  that  all  the  distance  from  Milwaukee  to  Milton 
Junction  was  finally  built  through  the  aid  of  farm  mortgages  and 
other  help  from  citizens  along  its  line,  and  not  from  that  promised 
help  he  had  a  right  to  expect  from  the  citizens  of  Milwaukee.  Mr. 
Kilboum  formed  his  company  which  in  the  first  place  was  com- 
posed largely  of  citizens  of  Milwaukee,  but  afterwards,  failing  to 
get  the  help  from  Milwaukee  he  expected,  he  had  to  select  directors 
from  those  living  along  the  line,  among  whom  were  Adam 
F.  Ray  of  Whitewater,  Mr.  Goodrich  of  Milton  and  A.  Hyatt  Smith 
of  Janesville  and  also  others  along  the  line.  The  office  of  the  com- 
pany was  located  in  Birchard's  Block,  a  three  story  edifice  where  the 
present  one  now  is.  To  say  that  the  meetings  of  the  directors  and 
stockholders  were  on  all  occasions,  harmonious,  would  be  stretching 
the  truth ;  as  the  farmers  would  sometimes  get  rather  anxious  about 
the  mortgages  on  their  farms,  and  would  be  eager  to  know  about 
the  earnings  of  this  road,  but  in  this  respect,  I  never  knew  of  any- 
one losing  his  farm. 

Mr.  Kilboum  continually  kept  before  the  public  the  fact,  that 
the  Michigan  Central  railroad  was  constantly  at  work  on  its  way 
west  and  had  got  as  far  as  Michigan  City  and  that  contracts  were  let 
for  its  completion  to  Chicago,  and  that  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad 
was  growing  very  near  Chicago  up  on  its  way  from  Cairo  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Ohio  river.  To  enumerate  all  the  trials  and  difficul- 
ties experienced  by  this  band  of  railroad  pioneers,  would  fill  a  rea- 


96  EAKLY  MILWAUKEE 

sonable  sized  book,  and  as  it  is  said  that  "all  things  have  an  end" 
so  the  exertions  of  these  men  with  all  their  efforts  had  to  succumb 
from  fulfilling  Mr.  Kilbourn's  plan  of  reaching  Dubuque. 

At  this  time  we  had  in  existence  a  political  organization  known 
as  the  forty  thieves,  or,  by  some,  as  "Barstow  and  the  balance." 
Mr.  Barstow  lived  in  Waukesha,  Wisconsin,  but  the  organization 
had  its  headquarters  in  Madison.  And  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  the 
Tammany  Hall  of  New  York  City  got  its  education  from  our 
famous  coterie  of  political  gorillas.  After  Mr.  Kilbourn  and  his 
friends  had  expended  all  their  energies  in  carrying  their  road  to 
the  objective  point  and  it  rested  at  Milton,  the  home  of  Mr.  Good- 
rich, a  proposition  came  like  a  clap  of  thunder  and  fell  among  the 
board  of  directors  in  shape  of  an  offer  from  the  grand  sachem  of  the 
"forty  thieves"  organization  to  the  effect  that,  if  the  company  would 
conclude  to  switch  off  at  Milton  and  build  their  line  to  Prairie  du 
Chien,  they,  the  said  honorable  body,  would  help  raise  the  money 
to  complete  the  same. 

A  full  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Director?  was  called  and  a  full 
representation  of  Milwaukee's  leading  and  financial  men  were  also 
present  as  spectators  and  when  the  question  of  accepting  or  re- 
jecting the  offer  came  up,  a  stormy  time  ensued.  A.  Hyatt  Smith  of 
Janesville  and  Kilbourn  et  al  opposed.  The  Directors  along  the 
line  as  far  as  it  was  completed  did  not  care  as  they  had  got  a  road 
anyhow  and  as  Smith  and  Kilbourn  had  not  secured  the  means  for 
an  extension  of  the  road  beyond  Milton  the  result  was  that  the  pro- 
position was  accepted  and  preparation  for  its  extension  was  made  in 
the  near  future,  proving  disastrous.  This  act  sealed  the  destiny  of 
Milwaukee  forever  and  its  consequences  have  been  felt  ever  since,  as 
a  comparison  of  Milwaukee  and  Chicago  of  today  shows. 

Let  us  see  what  followed:  Mr.  A.  Hyatt  Smith  was  a  power 
in  the  state,  politically  as  well  as  otherwise,  and  could  command 
as  much  influence  in  the  state  as  any  man  then  living.  He 
owned  large  interests  in  the  city  of  Janesville  and  his  cherished 
object  was  to  get  the  road  to  his  place,  but  this  new  deal,  he  saw, 
would  cut  him  off.  He  was  not  the  man  to  lie  down  and  cry  "quits." 
Far  from  it.  He  did  not  go  into  mourning  because  of  the  actions 
of  Barstow  and  the  balance,  but  he  went  to  Chicago  and  took  into 


FIRST  RAILWAY  97 

his  confidence  a  man  who  became  famous  in  after  years  as  a  rail- 
road man,  in  the  person  of  Wm.  B.  Ogden. 

These  two  men  concocted  a  scheme  of  building  a  railroad  from 
Chicago  to  Green  Bay  via  Janesville  and  as  soon  as  it  was  known 
in  Milwaukee  a  number  of  Milwaukee's  leading  and  financial  men 
looked  up  Mr.  Alexander  Mitchell  and  asked  that  sage  of  Milwau- 
kee's financial  four  hundred  what  he  thought  about  it.  He  simply 
said,  "Gentlemen,  it  cannot  be  done.  The  country  has  not  got  the 
money  to  spare  to  put  into  so  large  an  investment."  The  four  hun- 
dred were  satisfied  with  Mr.  Mitchell's  decision,  but  Mr.  Kilboum 
and  his  friends  did  not  believe  it,  for  they  went  to  work  at  once  and 
raised  the  necessary  means  and  built  eight  miles  of  road  from  Milton 
to  Mr.  Smith's  very  door  and  I  do  not  know  but  what  they  would 
have  carried  the  road  into  his  house  and  left  it  there,  if  they  could. 
All  Milwaukee,  nearly,  turned  out  to  the  celebration  of  the  event, 
and  a  grand  time  they  had,  and  supposed  they  had  pleased  and  grati- 
fied Mr.  Smith  now  that  he  had  the  road  to  his  town  and  stopped 
further  opposition.  Not  so.  Messrs.  Smith  &  Odgen  went  to  Wash- 
ington city  and  consulted  with  Mr.  Robert  J.  Walker,  TJ.  S.  Treas- 
urer, and  the  result  of  this  interview  was  the  return  of  Smith  and 
Ogden  home,  and  the  next  we  heard  »f  them  was  through  the  legisla- 
ture of  Wisconsin  and  Illinois  with  a  bill  in  each  house  asking  for  a 
charter  for  the  Rock  River  Valley  Railroad  Company  to  run  from 
Chicago  to  Green  Bay.  They  got  this  bill  through  both  legislatures 
at  one  and  the  same  time  and  then  what  followed  was  simply  this : 
That  Robert  J.  Walker  went  to  England  and  purchased  the  rails 
and  two  locomotives.  A  part  of  the  rails  and  a  locomotive  were 
landed  in  due  time,  one  at  Chicago  and  one  at  Green  Bay,  and  the 
contract  was  let  for  the  entire  distance  to  Messrs.  Chambers  & 
English  of  Janesville.  This  road,  I  need  not  tell  you,  but  the  fact 
exists,  is  no  less  than  the  great  Chicago  &  Northwestern  System 
which  traverses  the  State  of  Wisconsin  in  all  directions  and  which 
has  compelled  the  removal  of  the  general  offices  to  Chicago  of  Mil- 
waukee's favorite  and  time-honored  Milwaukee  &  St.  Paul  Railroad 
Company  system. 

The  creation  and  completion  of  this  Rock  River  Valley  rail- 
road cut  off  completely  all  the  trade  of  the  state  from  Milwaukee 
and  gave  it  to  Chicago,  all  the  country  north  and  west  of  the  line 


98  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

and  for  certain  distances  east  of  it  on  account  of  certain  inefficient 
country  roads.  The  merchants  and  manufacturers  now  living  will 
bear  me  out  in  this  statement,  and  from  this  your  city  did  not  re- 
cover until  after  the  late  rebellion  and  the  Chicago  fire  and  by  this 
time  you  had  the  greenback  and  legal  tender  period  to  help  you. 

I  wish  I  could  erase  from  all  records  the  failure  of 
Milwaukee's  business  and  financial  men  to  respond  to  the  efforts  of 
Mr.  Kilboum  and  his  associates  to  carry  out  the  original  plan  of 
going  to  Dubuque  and  to  have  prevented,  thereby,  the  designs  of 
the  Madison  clique,  but  it  cannot  be  done  and  Milwaukee  must 
bear,  forever,  its  lost  opportunities.  However,  as  the  railroad  build- 
ing in  Wisconsin  had  become  urgent,  Mr.  E.  H.  Goodrich  of  your 
city,  was  the  originator  of  the  idea  of  a  road  to  Horicon,  of  which 
he  can  give  you  the  history.  And  Judge  Eose  of  Watertown  started 
a  line  from  Brookfield  Junction  to  go  through  Watertown  to  the 
Mississippi  river  via  Baraboo  and  got  his  road  as  far  as  Watertown 
when  Mr.  Alexander  Mitchell  came  forward  with  a  proposition  to 
Judge  Rose  and  his  associates  to  the  effect  that  four  of  his  directors, 
myself  included,  should  resign  and  allow  himself  and  Russell  Sage 
and  two  other  New  York  gentlemen  to  supply  our  places,  which  was 
agreed  to,  and  from  this  transaction  grew  the  first  consolidation  of 
the  Milwaukee  roads  under  the  title  of  the  Milwaukee  &  St.  Paul 
EailToad  Company,  and  a  distinguishing  title  it  has  become  in  all 
parts  of  our  country.  Its  system  is  known,  for  short,  as  the  Mil- 
waukee road.  What  effect  in  not  responding  to  Mr.  Kilbourn's 
demands  at  the  time  Mr.  A.  Hyatt  Smith  retired  from  the  board 
of  directors  of  your  first  road,  owing  to  switching  off  at  Milton,  I 
leave  you  to  judge.  But  I  certainly  think  that  Milwaukee  owes 
something  in  memory  of  the  grand  efforts  of  Mr.  Kilboum  in 
working  and  planning  as  he  did,  both  with  his  money,  influence 
and  energies  to  build  up  a  system  of  railroads  which  should  inure- 
to  the  benefit  of  Milwaukee  and  to  it  only. 

In  reading  the  memoirs  of  Mr.  Sivyer,  Milwaukee's  First 
White  Child,  many,  yes,  very  many,  of  the  names  he  enumerates 
come  back  to  me  and  carry  me  back  to  the  days  long  gone  by  and 
bring  to  my  view  many  events  which  your  association  ought  to  have 
on  record  and  preserved  for  future  generations.  Old  land  marks, 
old  events,  anecdotes  of  old  citizens,  some  of  which  have  been  rich 


FIRST  RAILWAY  99 

and  quaint.  To  me,  Milwaukee  is  almost  sacred  and  I  love  it  and 
the  few  remaining  representatives  of  your  association.  Like  the 
rise  and  fall  of  the  Roman  empire,  I  had  my  rise  and  fall  in  your 
city  where  I  thought  to  end  my  days,  but  the  fates  have  been  against 
it ;  yet  I  like  to  drop  in  and  bring  to  my  mind  the  early  landmarks 
and  note  the  changes  which  have  come  from  the  hands  of  man 
through  the  influences  of  time  and  the  energies  of  Christian  civili- 
zation. Amongst  all  the  joys  and  sorrows  which  have  come  to  me 
in  my  Milwaukee  surroundings  there  is  nothing  that  has  so  im- 
pressed me  and  remained  a  fixture  so  permanent  upon  my  mind  as 
the  lost  opportunity  Milwaukee  has  experienced  in  not  supporting 
and  carrying  out  Mr.  Kilboum's  ideas  and  efforts  in  his  railroad 
plans.  I  can  only  say,  I  am  sorry  its  effect  and  influence  can  never 
be  regained  and  that  Milwaukee  has  lost  the  proud  eminence  that 
many  of  its  best  and  oldest  citizens  had  in  their  fondest  hopes  £in- 
ticipated,  but  now  find  them  all  gone. 

I  once  heard  an  eminent  Divine  say  that  "History  was  but  the 
errors  of  statesmen,"  and  history  proves  also  that  extremes  follow 
one  another.  And  so  we  find  it,  because,  no  sooner  had  the  gloom 
of  disappointment  fallen  upon  Milwaukee,  owing  to  A.  Hyatt  Smith 
and  his  associates,  than  E.  H.  Goodrich,  Samuel  Brown  and  two 
other  of  your  citizens  organized  an  expedition  of  survey  for  a  new 
railroad,  and  each  subscribed  $25.00,  and  this  amount  was  paid 
over  into  the  hands  of  Garrett  Vliet  to  commence  the  survey  of  a 
new  road,  and  when  this  was  expended  to  make  a  draft  for  more 
and,  if  not  honored,  return.  He  did  not  return,  but  the  result  of 
this  effort  has  given  Milwaukee  its  La  Crosse  &  Milwaukee  rail- 
road, the  history  of  which,  with  all  its  trials  and  difficulties,  yon 
will  find  in  the  book  I  have  sent  you  and  the  substance  of  which 
many  of  you  can  probably  bring  back  to  your  memory. 

In  justice,  however,  to  Mr.  A.  Hyatt  Smith,  I  may  add  that  he 
and  Mr.  Corwith,  a  rich  banker,  of  Galena,  made  the  effort  to  extend 
your  first  railroad  from  Janesville  to  Galena,  but  it  fell  through, 
probably  for  the  reason  that  your  road,  stopping  at  Janesville, 
would  give  Mr.  Smith's  town  full  control  of  the  trade  of  the  sur- 
rounding country  better  than  to  have  the  road  extended. 

I  am  in  hopes  that  this  feeble  effort  to  bring  back  to  your 
minds  old  days  and  old  events  may  have  the  effect  of  recalling 


100  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

others  from  your  organization  and  glean  from  them  other  scraps 
of  early  Milwaukee  days  and  thus  keep  these  events  from  being 
lost  to  your  posterity.  It  seems  to  me  that  there  is  much  truth  in 
the  old  saying  that  "There  is  a  divinity  which  shapes  our  ends, 
rough  hew  them  as  we  will ;"  because,  notwithstanding  all  the  efforts 
that  were  made  in  the  foregoing  as  portrayed,  it  seems  as  though 
those  efforts  were  met  with  obstacles,  unforeseen  and  not  to  be 
overcome,  and  as  a  verification  of  this  fact  we  have  an  example  in 
the  circumstance  that  the  man  who  acted  in  the  capacity  of  team- 
ster for  Mr.  Corwith  and  his  party  in  looking  over  the  line  of  your 
first  railroad  from  Janesville  to  Galena  was  no  less  than  our  late 
President — U.  S.  Grant. 


First   Locomotive   Built   in 
Wisconsin 

By  George  Richardson. 

Much  has  been  recently  said  and  written  in  a  local  controversy 
as  to  the  identity  of  that  particular  locomotive  to  which  should 
attach  the  credit  of  being  the  first  one  built  in  the  state  of  Wiscon- 
sin, and  it  is  lamentable  that  a  great  part  of  that  so  said  and  writ- 
ten is  far  from  the  actual  fact.  If  the  question  of  priority  of  con- 
struction is  worth  talking  about  at  all,  it  is  worthy  of  being  told  as 
it  really  existed.  The  perversion  of  a  fact  in  order  to  suit  the  pre- 
conceived notion  of  a  narrator  is  not  history,  and  does  more  to 
create  a  feeling  of  mistrust  in  the  minds  of  those  interested,  than 
can  be  overcome  by  volumes  of  published  truth.  The  statement 
that  no  question  is  ever  settled  unless  settled  right,  applies  with 
equal  force  to  this  locomotive  question  as  it  did  to  the  vexed  slavery 
question  of  half  a  century  ago.  The  proof  of  the  pudding  is  in  the 
eating  of  it,  and  the  actual  truth  of  a  controversy  should  be  de- 
termined by  the  preponderance  of  substantiated  data  to  sustain  it. 

My  interest  in  this  matter  attaches  not  only  from  a  motive  of 
fact,  but  from  a  motive  of  personal  pride,  and  the  latter  condition 
arises  from  the  fact  that  I  am — so  far  as  I  know — the  only  person 
now  living  who  had  anything  to  do  with  Milwaukee's  first  locomo- 
tive before  it  was  put  into  active  service.  It  is  true  that  my  con- 
nection with  Milwaukee's  first  locomotive  was  not  over  important, 
as  I  now  consider  it,  but  was  such  as  to  give  me  the  right  to  claim 
connection  with  it,  and  to  vouch  for  the  absolute  truth  of  all  I  may 
Bay  relative  thereto,  from  a  personal  standpoint. 

During  the  years  1852,  1853,  and  1854,  I  was  employed  by  John 
Miller  ("Long  John"  he  was  called  by  reason  of  his  great  size,  six 
feet  nine  inches  in  height).  Mr.  Miller  was  at  that  time  Milwau- 
kee's heavy  moving  contractor,  and  he  it  was  who  moved  Milwau- 
kee's first  locomotive  from  the  shop  where  it  was  built  and  placed  it 
on  the  tracks  of  what  was  then  the  Milwaukee  and  Mississippi  rail- 
road, now  the  Milwaukee  road. 


102  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

The  locomotive  was  built  at  the  works  of  W.  B.  Walton  &  Co., 
known  as  the  Menominee  foundry,  and  located  at  the  southwest 
comer  of  Reed  and  South  Water  streets.  The  first  locomotive  dif- 
fered from  all  alleged  drawings  of  it  as  recently  published  in  some 
of  the  Milwaukee  papers,  and  also  from  the  alleged  drawing  of  it 
in  the  possession  of  the  Milwaukee  Old  Settlers'  Club,  inasmuch  as 
it  was  what  is  known  as  "Inside  connected,"  that  is  the  machinery, 
cylinder,  etc.,  was  all  imderenath  the  boiler,  except  the  parallel 
rods  connecting  the  two  pair  of  driving  wheels.  Recently  published 
drawings  claiming  to  represent  the  first  engine  show  the  cylinders 
and  machinery  as  being  located  on  the  outside,  as  locomotives  of 
today  are  built.  This  is  a  mistake.  A  most  thorough  inquiry  and 
search  has  failed  to  discover  a  sketch  or  drawing  of  the  first  locomo- 
tive as  it  really  was.  If  such,  however,  is  in  existence,  this  con- 
troversy may  be  the  means  of  bringing  it  to  light.  I  recollect  this 
engine  as  plainly  as  though  I  had  seen  it  but  yesterday,  and  I  re- 
member that  on  its  dome  or  sandbox  on  top  of  the  boiler  was  the 
following : 

MENOMONEE  LOCOMOTIVE  WORKS. 

No.  1. 

JAMES  WATERS,  Engineer. 

W.  B.  WALTON  &  CO.,  PROPRIETORS. 

On  the  side  of  the  boiler  was  this  word: 

«  M  E  N  0  M  0  N  E  E.  " 

On  Oct.  15,  1852,  "Long  John,"  with  his  crew  of  a  dozen  men 
and  several  yoke  of  oxen,  began  laying  temporary  tracks  from  a 
point  at  the  foundry  near  which  is  now  located  the  scales  of  See- 
both  Brothers,  and  thence  to  Reed  street,  on  Reed  to  the  bridge 
over  the  Menomonee  river — then  a  float  bridge.  No  trouble  was 
experienced  until  the  bridge  was  reached.  At  that  time  Reed  street 
was  just  about  wide  enough  for  ordinary  wagons  to  meet  and  pass, 
and  the  locomotive  and  its  tracks  occupied  the  whole  street.  At 
the  bridge  all  the  power  of  men,  block  and  tackle,  as  well  as  oxen, 
was  needed  to  enable  us  to  get  the  locomotive  up  the  incline  at  the 
bridge.  The  engine's  weight  was  about  twenty-six  tons,  and  under 
it  the  bridge  barely  escaped  sinking,  but  it  was  safely  landed  on 


FIRST  LOCOMOTIVE  103 

the  north  side  of  the  river,  and  placed  on  the  track,  located  about 
seventy-five  feet  away  from  the  bridge,  and  here  my  connection 
with  it  ceased. 

Now  let  us  establish  the  identity  of  this  engine,  when  it  was 
built  and  who  built  it.  In  this  controversy  I  have  no  desire  to  rob 
anybody  of  justly  acquired  credit,  but  with  the  lapse  of  time  errors 
of  identity  and  fact  are  so  very  apt  to  predominate  and  confuse. 

In  a  recent  Milwaukee  newspaper  article  Charles  G.  Menzel,  of 
Minneapolis,  claims  that  his  father,  the  late  Gregor  Menzel,  built 
the  first  locomotive  in  Milwaukee,  and  that  it  was  named  White- 
water. To  refute  this  claim  of  Mr.  Menzel  there  appears  in  The 
Milwaukee  Sentinel  of  October  14,  1852,  the  following: 

"The  Menomonee  is  the  name  of  the  splendid  locomotive  just 
built  at  the  Menomonee  foundry  for  the  M.  and  M.  R.  R.  company. 
The  Menomonee  leaves  the  foundry  for  the  track  today.  It  was 
designed  and  built  under  the  superintendence  of  James  Waters,  to 
whose  skill  it  bears  ample  testimony.  The  next  engine,  now  nearing 
completion,  is  to  be  called  Whitewater." 

Again,  the  Sentinel  of  Oct.  16,  1852,  says :  "The  new  locomo- 
tive, the  Menomonee,  now  fairly  launched  from  the  Walton  &  Co.*8 
foundry  yesterday,  commenced  its  march  toward  the  railroad 
track." 

This  "march"  of  the  Menomonee  I  have  described  above.  Also, 
the  following  from  the  Sentinel  of  Oct.  25,  1852 : 

"The  locomotive  Menomonee,  built  by  Walton  &  Co.,  at  the  Me- 
nomonee foundry,  the  first  one  manufactured  there,  was  put  in  mo- 
tion on  the  track  on  Saturday  (Oct.  23),  and  performed  to  the  com- 
plete satisfaction  of  all  concerned.  We  note  the  fact  with  no  little 
pride  that  here  in  Milwaukee  has  been  built  the  first  locomotive 
west  of  Cleveland." 

Then  the  following  from  the  Free  Democrat,  Oct.  26,  1852: 
"The  new  locomotive,  the  Menomonee,  was  put  on  the  track  yester- 
day, and  its  speed  pretty  well  tested  running  fourteen  miles  in 
twelve  minutes." 

I  am  fully  aware  that  some  there  be  who  will  smile  broadly  ftt 
the  speed  here  given  to  my  pet  engine  by  the  Free  Democrat.    Re- 


104  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

porters  of  those  days  were  the  forerunners  of  many  to  follow,  and 
their  imagination  was  just  as  vivid,  as  lurid,  as  romantic  as  is  that 
of  many  of  the  reporters  of  today. 

The  facts  here  given,  I  believe,  fully  establish  the  identity  of 
the  first  locomotive  built  in  Milwaukee — establish  the  fact  that 
it  was  called  Menomonee ;  that  it  was  designed  by  and  built  under 
the  sole  direction  of  James  Waters,  as  engineer,  and  in  no  way  does 
the  name  of  Gregor  Menzel  appear  in  connection  therewith,  as 
claimed  by  his  son. 

In  the  Milwaukee  directory  of  1851  the  name  of  Gregor  Menzel 
(a  most  unusual  and  uncommon  name)  appears  as  "gunsmith. 
Lake,  near  Ferry."  I  knew  Gregor  Menzel  personally  and  well. 
He  was  a  most  excellent  mechanic,  and  well  thought  of  by  all  who 
knew  him,  but  at  the  time  when  he  has  been  given  credit  for  de- 
signing and  building  the  first  locomotive  in  Milwaukee  he  was  em- 
ployed in  the  shop  as  a  journeyman  mechanic,  as  has  been  stated  in 
the  public  press  by  Zacharia  Van  Horn,  a  half-brother  of  Mr.  Wal- 
ton, and  an  employe  of  the  company  at  that  time.  It  is  also  very 
improbable  that  Mr.  Menzel  had  any  connection  with  this  locomo- 
tive in  a  supervisory  capacity,  for  the  very  good  and  sufficient  rea- 
son that  Isaac  Waters,  a  son  of  James  Waters,  was  assistant  fore- 
man in  the  shop  at  that  time. 

I  have  no  desire  to  even  attempt  to  rob  Mr.  Menzel  of  the  credit 
of  designing  and  building  the  second  locomotive,  a  drawing  of 
which  was  recently  presented  to  the  Old  Settlers'  Club,  and  which 
was  called  Whitewater,  as  shown  by  the  following  from  the  Free 
Democrat  of  Jan.  12,  1853 : 

"The  Menomonee  foundry  has  just  turned  out  another  locomo- 
tive for  the  M.  and  M.  R.  E.  company,  called  Whitewater.  It  is 
the  same  size  as  the  first,  but  with  outside  connections." 

The  above  conclusively  clinches  both  sides  of  this  long  mooted 
question.  The  Menomonee  was  the  first,  with  inside  connections. 
The  Whitewater  was  the  second,  with  outside  connections. 

James  Waters  designed  and  built  the  first,  and  Gregor  Menzel 
may  have  designed  and  built  the  second. 


An   Up -River   Mystery 

Eead  by  Jeremiah  Quin,  Oct.  2,  1899. 

In  the  autumn  of  1858  an  occurrence  just  above  the  dam  caused 
much  annoyance  to  the  squatter  settlers  of  that  region.  The  La 
Crosse  shops  were  running  in  full  blast.  The  long  brick  blacksmith 
shop  on  the  crest  of  the  river  bank  was  full  of  vigorous,  brawny 
men,  many  of  whom  built  small  houses,  known  as  shanties,  along 
the  river  banks.  A  custom,  or  rather  a  fashion,  prevailed  among 
these  knights  of  the  ringing  anvil,  of  wearing  red  flannel  shirts  at 
work;  and  proudly  as  ever  marched  "red  branch  knight"  of  old, 
we  strutted  in  these  colors  to  and  from  the  smoky  shop. 

•The  women  along  the  river  banks  seemed  to  catch  inspiration 
from  our  colors,  and  the  blacksmith's  wife  could  be  easily  distin- 
guished, as  with  high  head  and  proud  bearing,  on  each  wash  day, 
with  well-rounded  bare  arms,  and  ample  corsetless  bust,  she  laid 
the  masculine  emblem  on  the  green  sunny  sward  to  dry;  for  in 
those  days,  clotheslines  and  clothes  horses  were  unknown,  or  deemed 
effeminate  luxury. 

All  at  once  a  dark  cloud  came  over  the  sylvan  spot.  A  red  shirt 
began  to  disappear  here  and  there  from  the  variegated  lawn,  and  no 
one  could  discover  how.  At  first  it  was  thought  a  neighbor  might 
have  gathered  one  in  by  mistake,  and  sometimes  a  humorous  scene 
would  occur  between  the  matrons  of  the  settlement,  thus:  "Mrs. 
Dressen,  when  you  thought  that  you  took  in  Hans'  red  shirt  last 
night,  was  it  not  my  Mike's  you  had  taken  by  mistake?'* 

"Ach,  mine  Gott,  Mrs.  Murphy,  mine,  mine;  I  never  could 
make  such  mistick  in  Hans'  shirt,"  would  be  the  good-natured 
reply.  These  little  things,  however,  never  caused  the  slightest  ill 
feeling  among  the  women  of  the  settlement. 

Day  by  day  the  crop  of  red  shirts  grew  less  and  less,  and  what 
deepened  the  mystery,  was,  that  while  there  were  garments  of  vari- 
ous hues,  and  shapes,  of  gauzy  textures,  and  costlier  finish,  lying 
on  the  daisy-covered  sward,  still,  only  the  red  flannel  shirt  was  ever 
taken. 


106  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Many  were  the  theories  which  were  advanced  in  regard  to  the 
matter,  but  still  there  was  no  clue  discovered.  Self-constituted  vig- 
ilance committees  kept  sharp  watch,  but  still  the  red  shirts  disap- 
peared, and  the  mystery  only  deepened.  An  unfortunate  rag  picker 
sauntered  one  day  through  the  settlement,  and  was  instantly  sur- 
rounded by  the  active  vigilance  committee.  His  huge  bag  was 
turned  inside  out,  and  its  contents  scattered  about,  but  no  red  shirt 
was  among  them.  The  terror-stricken  merchant,  gathering  up  his 
goods  once  more,  quickly  departed,  wondering  whether  he  had 
struck  one  of  Gulliver's  savage  islands. 

Red  was  eschewed  altogether.  Blue  flannel  was  made  the  smith- 
shop  uniform,  and  peace  and  happiness  reigned  on  the  river's  sylvan 
banks  once  more. 

The  long  winter  passed,  and  when  the  warm  sun  of  Spring 
melted  the  crested  snows  of  the  stream,  the  mystery  was  solved. 
Well  up  towards  Humboldt  a  colony  of  muskrats  made  settlement 
that  Winter.  Their  vast  network  of  nests  looked  as  usual,  until 
the  warm  Spring  rays  all  at  once  metamorphosed  the  scene,  and 
strange  to  relate,  in  a  single  day  the  colony  assumed  the  appear- 
ance of  a  miniature  English  military  camp,  and  a  most  picturesque 
sight  it  was,  too ;  every  nest  was  crowned — capped  with  a  red  flannel 
shirt. 

The  selection  by  the  colony  of  red  flannel  for  their  building  pur- 
poses is  perhaps  the  most  interesting  part  of  my  story,  and  as  it 
came  under  my  personal  observation,  I  will  relate  it. 

Sauntering  one  day  along  the  river  bank,  shot  gun  in  hand,  in 
quest  of  jacksnipes,  I  saw  a  large  muskrat  sitting  upon  one  of  a 
dozen  or  so  stones,  at  the  entrance  of  the  old  ravine,  a  little  above 
where  the  woolen  mill  now  stands.  My  first  impulse  was  of  course 
to  get  that  musk's  hide,  and  I  crawled  noiselessly  along  so  as  to  get 
within  sure  distance.  I  came  out  of  the  brush  a  little,  so  as  to  take 
sure  aim,  when  I  noticed  that  he  was  eying  me  very  intently,  with- 
out apparently  any  fear.  There  was  something  in  his  looks  which 
seemed  to  appeal  to  my  feelings,  and  Poor  Bums'  famous  lines  to 
the  mouse  came  into  my  mind  instantly : 


UP-RIVER  MYSTERY  107 

"I'm  truly  sorry  man's  dominion 
Has  broken  nature's  social  union. 
And  justifies  the  ill  opinion 
That  makes  thee  startle. 
At  me,  thy  poor  earthborn  companion 
And  fellow  mortal." 

And  I  was  much  pleased  that,  unlike  Bums*  scared  little 
mouse,  my  muskrat  never  stirred,  but  gave  me  candid  glances  of 
confidence.  I  became  at  once  much  interested  in  him,  and  al- 
though I  would  not  kill  him  for  the  world  now,  I  feared  that  some 
less  humane  hunter  might  come  along  and  shoot  him  on  sight. 
Deeming  it  my  duty  imder  the  circumstances  to  give  him  a  lasting 
fright,  I  fired  both  barrels  of  my  old  shotgun  against  a  rock  near 
him.  He  looked  at  me  for  a  moment,  and  jumping  up  on  that  very 
rock,  began  to  gambol  around  on  it.  Determined  if  possible  to 
strike  terror  into  him,  I  reloaded  and  fired  once  more,  this  time 
into  the  water,  which  splashed  upon  him  and  over  the  rocks  around 
him,  but  with  no  effect.  He  swam  aroimd,  and  frisked  from  rock 
to  rock,  and  then  looked  at  me  in  a  funny  sort  of  way,  much  as  to 
say:    "Fire  another.    I  like  it." 

I  now  began  to  feel  great  interest  in  him,  and  pity  for  him, 
especially  as  I  felt  the  responsibility  of  giving  him  so  much  confi- 
dence in  a  hunter.  I  was  down  to  my  last  charge  of  shot,  and  I  at 
once  resolved  to  make  that  tell,  even  at  the  risk  of  wounding  him. 
I  loaded  in  the  charge  of  powder  and  rammed  it  down  with  my  last 
wad  of  paper — we  had  no  cartridges  in  those  days — I  put  in  my 
last  charge  of  shot,  but  had  nothing  left  for  a  wad.  Necessity  is 
the  mother  of  invention,  it  is  said,  and  so  it  proved  in  my  case. 
Being  a  blacksmith  I  of  course  wore  the  regulation  red  shirt,  and 
taking  my  knife  from  my  pocket,  I  cut  a  piece  from  it,  and  rammed 
down  there  with  the  charge.  Approaching  to  within,  well  probably 
eight  feet  of  the  rock  from  which  that  rat  sat  smiling  at  me,  I  put 
the  full  charge  of  shot  against  the  rock,  very  close  to  him,  so  as  to 
shock  him,  but  instead  of  diving  terror-stricken  into  the  river  that 
rat  actually  curled  up  his  tail,  and  jumped  around  in  evident  merri- 
ment. The  red  wadding  did  not  bum  but  fell  on  the  rock.  He 
picked  it  up  in  his  mouth,  and  shook  it  at  me  several  times.    I  then 


108  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

grew  angry  and  ran  for  a  stone.  He  must  have  seen  my  change  of 
countenance,  for  he  swam  away  hurriedly  with  the  piece  in  his 
mouth,  with  which  he  undoubtedly  embellished  his  nest;  evidently 
the  whole  colony  finding  red  flannel  well  suited  to  building,  had 
raided  the  banks  on  both  sides.  Nothing  was  easier  than  their 
mode  of  operation.  They  would  sneak  the  garment  off  the  bank 
into  the  river,  and  then  carry  it  under  the  water,  so  that  the  people 
watching  for  a  man  thief,  could  not  account  for  the  manner  of  the 
disappearance.  One  watcher  offered  to  make  affidavit  that  the  shirt 
was  lying  on  the  grass,  when  she  looked  around  for  a  moment,  and 
on  turning  again,  found  the  garment  gone,  but  her  story  was  dis- 
credited and  she  was  charged  with  sleeping  on  her  watch. 

This  little  incident  was  recalled  to  my  mind  by  the  interesting 
story  related  at  the  Old  Settlers'  picnic  by  your  late  treasurer, 
Brother  Lee.  The  story  so  graphically  and  truthfully  told  by  Mr. 
Lee  made  a  deep  impression  on  my  mind,  as  it  presents  to  the  nat- 
uralist, the  reptile  in  an  entirely  new  and  wonderful  light,  giving 
us  a  picture  of  gratitude  and  affection  almost  human. 

Some  might  say  that  the  incident  which  came  imder  my  own 
observation  shows  the  muskrat  up  as  a  more  cunning  character,  and 
that  being  higher  in  the  scale  of  creation  than  Brother  Lee's  rep- 
tile, he  had  partaken  more  of  modem  civilization,  by  smiling  in  my 
face  now,  and  in  the  next  moment  conspiring  to  rob  me  of  even  my 
only  shirt.  However  all  this  might  be,  the  incident  itself  does  not 
approach  the  picture  given  us  by  Brother  Lee,  either  in  intensity  of 
human  affection,  or  in  depth  of  human  pathos. 

The  Rhodean  sculptors  of  old  have  left  the  world  an  immortal 
group  called  the  Laocoon,  in  which  is  depicted  the  severe  decree  of 
the  gods  against  Troy,  the  strangling  of  the  sons  of  Priam  by  huge 
serpents.  If  ever  an  American  sculptor  arises  equal  to  the  great 
task  of  depicting  Brother  Lee's  experience  with  his  serpents,  the 
American  story  must  far  surpass  the  classic  and  famous  Laocoon, 
Look  at  the  group !  There  stands  the  manly  form  of  our  late  treas- 
urer, proudly  encoiled  within  the  scaly  circles  of  a  huge  reptile, 
who  is  in.  the  attitude  of  impressing  a  loving  kiss  upon  his  cheek, 
whilst  as  a  bas-relief,  the  crouching,  cowardly  chicken  thief  is 
firmly  bound  in  the  ccals  of  younger  serpents. 


UP-RIVER  MYSTERY  109 

Let  us  hope  that  some  day  this  group  will  stand  in  the  Seventh 
Ward  park,  inviting  to  Michigan's  wondrous  shore,  travelers  from 
every  land,  even  as  now  flock  around  the  gallery  of  the  Laocoon, 
enduring  through  all  time  as  the  last  and  greatest  climax  of  Ameri- 
can art  and  of  American  story. 


Pioneer  Physicians  and  Druggists 

By  John  A.  Dadd. 

In  ihe  year  1850  there  stood  on  the  southeast  comer  of  Wiscon- 
sin  and  East  Water  streets  a  cluster  of  frame  buildings  owned  by 
Elisha  Eldred,  the  comer  occupied  by  Hatch  &  Patterson  as  a  dmg 
store,  while  overhead  Mr.  Eldred  had  his  office.  Mr.  Hatch  being 
one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  the  city,  a  member,  and  I  believe,  one 
of  the  organizers  of  St.  Paul's  Episcopal  church,  his  store  was  the 
resort  of  many  of  the  most  prominent  and  well-known  citizens. 
There  you  would  meet  Judge  A.  G.  Miller  of  the  United  States 
Court ;  the  Eev.  Akerly,  rector  of  St.  Paul's  church ;  Cyrus  Hawley, 
one  of  its  wardens ;  James  B.  Martin,  also  a  warden  or  vestryman  of 
the  same.  Our  late  esteemed  member,  Horace  Chase,  was  a  fre- 
quent caller,  coming  seated  behind  a  fine  specimen  of  the  Morgan 
horse,  of  which  breed  he  seemed  peculiarly  fond. 

Physicians  came  necessarily  to  procure  medicaments  requisite 
in  their  practice.  Foremost  among  them  were  A.  W.  Blanchard 
and  J.  B.  Dousman.  Dr.  Blanchard  I  was  first  intimately  acquaint- 
ed with,  although  having  previously  been  under  the  care  of  Dr. 
Whitney  for  about  ten  weeks,  being  taken  soon  after  coming  to  the 
city  with  typhoid  fever,  and  attended  by  him  at  the  hospital  of  the 
Sisters  of  Charity,  then  situated  at  the  southwest  comer  of  Oneida 
and  Jackson  streets,  the  site  now  occupied  by  the  residence  of  Dr. 
W.  Fox.  Dr.  Whitney  was  a  very  able  physician,  who  afterwards 
went  to  California.  Previous  to  going  he  associated  with  him  Dr. 
Lewis  McKnight,  now  chief  examining  physician  to  the  Northwest- 
em  Mutual  Life  Insurance  company. 

Dr.  Blanchard  was  a  man  of  marked  traits  of  character,  whom 
to  know  was  to  respect;  his  convictions  were  strong,  but  guided  by 
high  conscientiousness,  he  seldom  erred.  He  had  a  large  family, 
principally  daughters,  among  them  Mrs.  W.  P.  Lynde  and  Mrs. 
John  Nazro.  All  displayed  more  or  less  the  strong  mental  char- 
acteristics of  their  father.  He  lived  to  an  advanced  age  and  died 
much  regretted  and  highly  respected. 


PHYSICIANS  AND  DEUGGISTS  111 

Dr.  J.  B.  Dousman  was  also  a  person  of  strong  individuality,  a 
good  physician  and  a  kind-hearted  man.  To  see  him  and  note  his 
strong  earnest  gaze,  was  to  never  forget  it.  It  is  many  years  since 
he  passed  away.  Dr.  E.  B.  Wolcott  was  so  widely  and  well  known 
that  young  or  old  have  heard  of  him,  and  I  could  not  say  anything 
that  would  add  to  a  reputation  that  already  stands  so  high,  as  a 
most  skilful  surgeon  and  a  generous,  kind-hearted  man,  whose  tall, 
lithe  and  active  form  was  once  so  familiar  on  our  streets. 

There  was  also  another  well  and  widely  known  physician.  I  re- 
fer to  Dr.  J.  K.  Bartlett,  who  until  lately  was  still  a  resident  of  our 
city.  He  was  a  gentleman  of  refinement  and  culture,  and  one  of  our 
best-read  physicians,  and  occupied  a  very  high  position  in  his  profes- 
sion. His  health  necessitating  removal  to  a  milder  climate,  he  went 
to  California  to  reside. 

Dr.  C.  C.  Robinson  was  a  frequent  caller  at  the  store.  He  has 
accumulated  large  means  through  investments  in  real  estate,  is  still 
a  resident  of  the  city,  and  a  hale  and  hearty  man. 

Dr.  D.  W.  Gorham  was  one  of  the  oldest  medical  practioners  of 
the  city,  coming  some  time  about  1836  or  1837.  In  an  early  day 
he  kept  a  drug  store  in  the  vicinity  of  Ealboum  Town.  He  was  also, 
for  a  period,  in  the  oflBce  with  Dr.  Blanchard,  was  very  peculiar  and 
eccentric  in  his  ways,  but  a  man  of  great  capability,  professionally, 
highly  esteemed  by  those  who  employed  him  and  knew  his  skill,  but 
a  mere  child  in  business  matters,  and  consequently  never  very  pros- 
perous. 

Dr.  Blanchard  thought  much  of  his  ability,  and  in  speaking  of 
him  to  the  writer,  said  he  was  one  of  those  who  would,  at  any  time 
of  the  night,  moimt  a  horse  bare  backed,  with  coat  tails  flying,  to  go 
and  see  a  case,  so  intensely  was  he  wrapped  up  in  his  profession. 
The  last  few  years  of  his  life  he  spent  on  his  farm  at  East  Troy, 
▼here  he  died.  His  remains  were  brought  to  this  city  and  interred 
at  Forest  Home  cemetery. 

Dr.  E.  D.  Baker  was  another  of  that  distinct  cast  of  characters 
that  always  leave  an  indelible  impression  on  the  memory  after  they 
have  passed  away.  He  was  a  firm  friend  or  an  implacable  enemy, 
gruff  in  his  manner,  caused,  I  think,  by  reverses  in  early  life,  losing 


112  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

much  property  by  reposing  too  much  confidence  in  the  integrity  of 
others,  which  soured  his  disposition  and  made  him  misanthropic. 
Otherwise  he  had  a  powerful  mind  of  a  metaphysical  tendency.  He 
was  well  and  deeply  read,  and  could,  had  he  been  so  disposed,  have 
occupied  a  very  high  position  in  his  profession.  His  energy  ap- 
peared to  have  left  him  after  his  reverses  and  he  sank  into  a  morbid 
condition,  apparently  at  war  with  all  the  world.  The  epithet  ap- 
plied to  the  great  lexicographer.  Dr.  Johnson ;  that  of  "Ursa  Major" 
might  also  have  aptly  been  bestowed  upon  him.  It  is  now  several 
years  since  he  died. 

Having  reviewed  some  of  the  medical  men,  I  must  not  overlook 
their  coadjutors,  the  druggists.  Of  the  firm  of  Hatch  &  Patterson, 
Mr.  Hatch  was  the  druggist,  Mr.  Patterson,  having  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, followed  the  calling  of  a  tanner.  (It  was  common  in  those 
days  and  has  been  up  to  a  very  recent  date  for  persons  to  enter  the 
drug  business  whether  educated  to  it  or  not.)  Mr.  Patterson  was 
related  to  John  H.  Van  Dyke  of  this  city,  I  believe  a  brother-in- 
law. 

Mr.  Hatch,  as  said  before,  was  one  of  the  earlier  settlers  of  the 
city,  and  had  previously  been  associated  with  L.  J.  Higby  in  the 
drug  business.  He  was  a  kind-hearted,  genial  man,  lacking  some- 
what in  force  of  character,  who  originally  came  from  Vermont.  I 
was  employed  as  a  clerk  by  the  firm,  the  situation  having  been  ob- 
tained for  me  by  our  old  friend,  P.  Van  Vechten,  Jr.,  a  few  days 
after  my  arrival  in  the  city.  The  business  was  afterwards  sold  to 
Dr.  J.  E.  Dowe,  who  came,  I  think,  from  New  Haven,  Conn.,  and 
was  a  brother-in-law  to  S.  B.  Grant,  who  was  engaged  in  the  lumber 
trade.  Previous  to  his  purchase  of  the  business  it  had  been  re- 
moved to  the  new  brick  block  erected  by  James  B.  Martin  on  the 
southwest  comer  of  East  Water  an3  Wisconsin  streets,  the  spot  now 
occupied  by  Mack's  building  in  which  is  located  the  Golden  Eagle 
store  of  Browning,  King  &  Co.  The  building  was  then  divided  into 
three  stores,  the  corner  occupied  by  J.  H.  Crampton,  dry  goods, 
next  south  by  Kistner  &  Bruno,  clothing  I  believe,  the  other  by 
Hatch  &  Patterson. 

Dr.  Dowe  carried  it  on  but  for  a  short  time.  Having  become  in- 
volved in  some  way  with  complications  in  J.  H.  Crampton's  dry 


PHYSICIANS  AND  DRUGGISTS  113 

goods  business.  Dr.  Dowe's  stock  was  sold  to  S.  Johnson,  Jr.,  whose 
business  afterwards  passed  successively  into  the  hands  of  Harring- 
ton &  Dadd,  C.  Harrington,  Swift  &  Smith  and  Geo.  W.  Swift. 
Mr,  Swift  ultimately  sold  out  some  eight  years  ago  to  Drake  Bros. ; 
half  of  their  present  store  covers  the  ground  on  which  stood  the 
old  one  occupied  by  Mr,  Swift,  that  was  erected  by  A.  F.  Clarke 
and  occupied  by  him  as  a  drug  store,  when  I  came  to  the  city  in 
1850.    The  firm  then  being  Clarke  &  Woodruff. 

Mr.  Hatch  left  the  city  a  few  years  ago  to  reside  with  his  son, 
Charles,  in  New  Jersey,  he  died  recently  at  Chattanooga,  Tennessee, 
where  he  had  gone  to  benefit  his  health,  having  been  a  sufferer  for 
years  from  locomotor  ataxia. 

Concluding  I  would  say  there  were  a  number  of  other  physi- 
cians, whom  the  limits  of  my  paper  do  not  allow  me  to  speak  of  in 
extenso,  among  them  Dr.  Diefendorf  and  Dr.  J.  Johnson  of  the 
regular  profession,  and  of  the  Homeopathic  school,  Drs.  Hewitt, 
Tracy,  Douglas,  Greves  and  R.  M.  Brown,  the  last  still  well  known 
and  much  respected. 


First  Small  Pox  Epidemic 

By  Dr.  J.  B.  Selby. 

In.  1843  smallpox  appeared  in  Milwaukee  for  the  first  time 
among  the  white  settlers.  The  first  ease  was  that  of  Mrs.  Mary 
Dewey,  the  wife  of  Linas  N.  Dewey,  who  came  to  Milwaukee  in 
1842.  She  had  the  disease  in  a  mild  form,  and  soon  recovered. 
Where  she  was  exposed  or  how  she  took  the  disease,  neither  she  or 
any  one  else  ever  knew.  It  probably  had  existed  among  the  In- 
dians camped  about,  and  as  they  were  in  numbers  here,  she  may 
have  been  exposed  to  one  who  had  recently  recovered.  Her  husband 
attended  to  her  wants  during  her  illness,  and  before  she  had  fairly 
recovered,  he  came  down  with  the  disease,  and  had  a  severe  time  be- 
fore his  recovery.  This  was  in  the  spring  of  1843 — occasionally 
there  was  a  case  of  smallpox  during  the  summer — ^but  by  the  middle 
of  August  the  disease  had  spread  to  such  an  extent  as  to  cause 
alarm.  While  no  unusual  publicity  was  given,  it  was  well  known 
at  Buffalo,  Cleveland,  Detroit,  and  other  ports  along  the  line  that 
an  epidemic  of  smallpox  had  broken  out  at  Milwaukee.  And  soon 
that  knowledge  must  seriously  interfere  with  the  landing  of  immi- 
grants and  other  passengers  destined  for  this  port,  who  would  pre- 
fer to  go  on  to  Bacine,  Southport,  or  even  to  Chicago,  than  land 
at  a  port  whose  hotels  might  be  stricken  with  the  contagious  disease, 
while  at  the  same  time  the  rural  population,  who  depended  on  Mil- 
waukee to  buy  their  produce  and  give  them  in  return  their  sup- 
plies, would  go  elsewhere  to  accomplish  that  object  rather  than  to 
risk  the  danger  here. 

Then  it  was  that  the  board  of  supervisors  took  action  to  stamp 
out  this  pestilence.  They  passed  a  resolution  creating  a  board  of 
health,  a  hospital  or  pest  house,  whence  all  taken  with  smallpox 
should  be  conveyed  and  another  resolution,  that  any  physician  who 
failed  to  report  any  case,  should  be  subject  to  a  fine.  The  question 
of  locating  the  pest  house  was  one  of  much  importance.  The  ground 
around  the  location  should  be  high  and  free  from  miasmatic  in- 
fluence; fresh,  pure  air  is  important  to  all  hospitals,  and  partic- 


SMALI/.POX  EPIDEMIC  115 

ularly  so  to  one  where  all  are  forcibly  sent,  having  a  contagious 
disease,  and  so  far  from  a  residence  as  to  justify  no  remonstrance 
to  its  use. 

The  supervisors  were  fortunate  enough  in  finding  a  location  that 
answered  favorably  all  these  questions.  This  location  was  on  the 
east  side  of  the  river,  about  3^  miles  north  of  Wisconsin  Street, 
and  y^,  Diile  east  of  Humboldt.  There  a  Mr.  Kirby  owned  40  acres, 
having  an  east  front  on  what  is  now  known  as  Oakland  Avenue,  of 
^  of  a  mile,  having  a  south  front  of  14  ^^  *  mile  on  the  sectional 
line  road;  called  the  town  line  road,  running  east  from  Humboldt 
and  about  eighty  rods  north  of  the  new  location  of  the  female  col- 
lege. The  land  was  high  and  dry,  covered  with  a  rich  and  vigorous 
growth  of  native  timber.  There  was  no  house  between  it  and  Mil- 
waukee; and  the  only  house  in  Humboldt  was  through  the  woods 
%  mile  away.  These  40  acres  now  clothed  with  rich  meadows  and 
pasture  were  then  clad  with  a  forest  of  oak,  maple,  and  hickory, 
except  a  clearing  of  about  2  acres  on  which  stood  a  log  house.  The 
time  was  pressing  and  so  was  the  alarm  in  Milwaukee.  A  contract 
was  soon  agreed  upon  between  the  owner  and  the  supervisors  to 
rent  the  land  and  house  from  September  1st,  1843,  to  May  Ist,  1844, 
for  $100.00.  The  house  not  affording  sufficient  room  for  those 
awaiting  their  retreat,  an  addition  was  thrown  up  on  the  north  at- 
tached to  the  log  house,  with  a  door  between.  This  addition  was 
16x30,  two  stories  high.  A  substantial  frame  was  run  up,  sheathed 
with  boards  up  and  down  and  well  battened,  covered  with  a  good 
shingled  roof.  A  stairway  was  made  connecting  the  two  floors,  and 
the  space  above  and  below,  was  divided  into  bed-rooms,  except  that 
below  a  large  room  was  reserved  for  the  dining  table. 

The  weather  being  warm  and  favorable  the  windows  were  al- 
lowed to  stand  open  admitting  a  free  use  of  fresh  air,  so  necessary 
to  purify  a  crowded  house  fi,lled  with  cases  of  smallpox.  The  land 
between  Milwaukee  and  the  Pest  house,  was  covered  by  heavy 
timber.  Between  the  two  points  were  some  three  or  four  deep 
gullies  or  ravines,  along  the  river.  The  land  being  higher  along  the 
lake  bluff,  caused  the  spring  freshets  to  run  towards  the  river — and 
in  time  cut  these  deep  ravines  through  the  clay.  So  that  the 
Indian  trail  from  Milwaukee  to  the  north  ran  along  the  bluff, 
crossing  the  heads  of  these  rivulets,  till,  passing  the  last  ravine 


116  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

about  opposite  Mineral  Spring  Park,  it  struck  off  west  to  the  sec- 
tion line,  now  known  as  Oakland  Avenue ;  thence  to  the  north,  pass- 
ing the  Pest  house,  and  on  to  Port  Washington.  The  Board  of 
Health  was  composed  of  three  members  with  Thomas  J.  Noyes  as 
Chairman.  Doctors  Bean  and  Bartlett  were  appointed  physicians 
to  the  hospital,  and  it  was  directed  that  all  cases  of  smallpox  should 
be  sent  there.  J.  B.  Selby  who  had  attended  lectures  at  Willoughby 
Medical  College  in  Ohio,  and  was  then  in  Bean  and  Bartlett's 
office,  transiently,  was  employed  to  superintend  the  hospital  and 
receive  instructions  from  the  attending  physicians  who  came  out 
usually  once  or  twice  a  week  to  see  the  sick. 

The  log  house  was  occupied  by  the  cook  and  his  sleeping  apart- 
ment ;  also  by  the  superintendent.  In  the  new  part  were  the  dining 
and  various  other  rooms,  both  above  and  below  for  the  sick.  One  of 
the  first  cases  sent  out  was  a  negro  called  Tom  Field.  Whether  that 
was  really  his  name,  or  one  borrowed  from  his  master,  for  he  had 
formerly  been  a  slave  at  the  south,  is  not  known.  During  the  sea- 
son he  had  been  a  cook  on  board  of  a  vessel,  and  as  his  was  a  mild 
case  of  smallpox  he  soon  recovered,  thence  was  employed  as  the 
cook  of  the  establishment;  and  a  good  cook  he  was,  busy  from 
morning  till  night,  preparing  gruels,  broths,  beef  tea  and  chicken 
for  the  sick  and  convalescent.  Our  number  was  few  at  first  but 
they  increased  until  we  had  about  40  including  the  sick  and  con- 
valescent, then  the  number  dropped  off,  till  the  house  was  closed. 
The  treatment  of  smallpox  at  the  hospital  in  1843,  adopted  by  the 
physicians  in  attendance,  was  very  simple.  Like  all  eruptive  di- 
seases, its  nature  is  to  run  a  regular  course  and  then  gradually  to 
disappear.  The  main  attention  of  the  physician  is  to  watch  the 
patient,  remove  obstructions  to  its  regular  course  and  confine  the 
disease  to  its  simplest  and  least  dangerous  form,  and  by  the  use  of 
emollients  such  as  cream,  vaseline  or  oil  to  lessen  as  much  as  pos- 
sible the  pox  marks  left  after  recovery.  The  disease  is  usually 
ushered  in  by  chills,  rigors  and  fever.  The  obvious  course  is  to 
learn  the  condition  of  the  bowels  if  constipated,  remove  by  the  use 
of  a  mild  laxative  of  salts  or  oil,  to  be  repeated  in  2  or  3  days  if 
necessary.  After  eruption  is  fully  developed,  the  fever  lessens  or 
passes  away  altogether.  Now  the  patient  is  to  be  carried  along 
with  simple  food  and  drinks  that  strength  may  be  sustained  during 


SMALLrPOX  EPIDEMIC  117 

the  weakness  attending  recovery.  Our  duty  seems  to  be  to  nurse 
our  patient  and  see  that  the  pulse  is  even,  assist  nature  that  no 
undue  obstruction  of  the  bowels  occurs,  seek  such  nourishment  as 
the  digestive  organs  may  bear  and  daily  to  strengthen  them  till 
convalescence  ensues. 

Smallpox  is  usually  divided  into  two  classes  or  grades:  The 
confluent,  where  the  pustules  run  into  each  other,  and  the  distinct 
where  the  pustules  form  a  round  distinct  pit  on  the  surface  of  the 
body.  The  confluent  is  the  most  malignant  and  dangerous  form 
and  from  it  few  recover.  Those  brought  to  the  hospital  were 
largely  of  the  distinct  class  of  cases,  some  were  mild,  others  severe, 
all  of  whom  recovered  and  in  due  time  were  conveyed  to  their 
homes.  The  house  was  kept  open  till  December  15th  and  then 
closed  for  want  of  patients.  The  epidemic  had  passed  away — win- 
ter with  its  chilly  frosts  had  closed  the  dwellings ;  and  checked  the 
disease.  Our  supplies  were  mostly  from  Milwaukee.  There  was  no 
trouble  in  getting  the  grocery  man  to  send  them  out;  they  were 
brought  near  the  house,  and  thence  conveyed  by  the  cook.  We  had 
everything  from  town,  except  milk,  which  we  obtained  in  ample 
supply  from  our  nearest  neighbor,  a  Mr.  Baer.  He  owned  160 
acres  in  the  same  section  on  which  we  dwelt  and  by  going  through 
the  woods  %  mile  we  opened  on  his  clearing.  We  took  our  can, 
both  morning  and  evening  and  after  passing  through  this  pleasant 
forest  path,  and  coming  to  his  house,  deposited  our  can  on  a  stump, 
and  retired  a  rod  or  so,  to  avoid  exposure.  Mrs.  Baer,  who  was  on 
the  watch  for  us,  came  out,  took  the  can,  and  filled  it,  depositing 
the  same  on  the  stump  and  then  retired.  As  we  advanced,  she  opened 
up  her  questions  as  to  the  sick  and  well.  Having  satisfied  them  all, 
we  retired  as  we  came. 

Mr.  and  Mrs,  Baer  settled  on  their  land  in  1842,  a  young  mar- 
ried couple.  The  husband  has  been  dead  some  ten  years.  The 
wife  still  lives  at  the  age  of  78  in  the  enjoyment  of  good  health, 
and  a  son,  who  is  a  prosperous  and  wealthy  farmer,  lives  near. 
She  attended  our  semi-centennial  Anniversary,  and  when  asked  if 
she  did  not  visit  the  old  settlers  reception  at  the  Plankinton  she 
replied  "no,  I  supposed  it  was  intended  only  for  those  invited."  I 
told  her  we  should  have  welcomed  her  to  our  reunion  and  our  re- 
freshment table.     She  seemed  to  regret  not  being  present  and  I 


118  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

certainly  felt  from  the  circumstances  of  my  first  acquaintance  with 
her  a  remorse  in  not  calling  the  attention  of  the  visiting  com- 
mittee to  her  name. 

It  may  be  noticed  that  in  this  record  some  facts  that  would 
be  worthy  of  mention  are  not  recorded,  such  as  the  number  of 
patients  treated,  their  names,  when  and  where  bom,  their  date  of 
reception  and  when  discharged.  Such  a  record  was  by  order  of 
the  board  of  health  kept  at  the  hospital.  At  the  close  of  their 
official  duties  in  December  1843  they  made  a  report  to  the  board 
of  health  of  which  the  above  mentioned  record  or  diary  formed 
a  part  and  by  them  was  lodged  with  the  board  of  supervisors. 

Some  three  jears  afterwards,  Milwaukee  obtained  a  city  char- 
ter and  the  board  of  supervisors,  having  been  superseded  by  a 
mayor  and  council,  handed  over  to  the  new  government,  when 
organized,  all  official  papers  pertaining  to  the  village  system, 
among  others  the  record  of  the  Pest  house  of  1843.  The  city 
charter  had  been  in  operation  some  15  years  when  one  night  the 
city  clerk's  office  was  discovered  to  be  on  fire,  and  before  morning, 
the  whole  of  Cross  Block  on  the  comer  of  East  Water  and  Huron 
Streets,  in  which  block  the  city  clerk's  office  was  located,  was  a 
mass  of  ruins,  and  all  the  books  of  that  office  and  papers  on  file 
were  lost. 

This  record  is  made  from  memory  and  is  believed  correct,  bo 
far  as  it  goes.  It  does  not  give  names  and  dates  of  those  treated 
nor  the  length  of  time  they  were  under  treatment.  Most  of  those 
brought  to  the  hospital  were  immigrants  recently  landed,  and  being 
hardy,  they  generally  recovered  and  were  sent  home.  Of  the  60 
patients  treated  at  the  hospital,  one  was  a  colored  man,  four  or 
five  were  Americans,  the  balance  was  composed  of  foreigners  re- 
cently landed  on  our  shores.  Of  those  who  died,  one  was  an  Amer- 
ican and  six  or  seven  were  immigrants. 

As  far  as  I  know  this  record  is  the  only  one  in  existence  treat- 
ing of  the  above  important  scenes  of  1843,  and  I  leave  it  with  this 
club,  that  it  may  now  or  hereafter  be  the  means  of  shedding  some 
light  on  the  early  history  of  Milwaukee. 

At  this  point  I  am  reminded,  not  for  the  first  time,  of  the 
apathy,  the  lack  of  a  business  ability  of  those  employed  for  others. 


SMALL-POX  EPIDEMIC  119 

The  board  of  supervisors  paid  the  owner  of  the  land  one  hun- 
dred dollars  for  its  use  from  September  Ist  till  the  following 
spring,  and  then  spent  several  hundred  dollars  to  build  an  ad- 
dition. Had  they  offered  the  owner  the  same  amount  or  a  trifle 
more  they  could  have  secured  the  title  to  the  land.  The  40  acres 
would  have  been  well  adapted  for  future  use  by  the  city,  and  if  not 
so  used,  would  have  rented  for  more  than  sufficient  to  pay  the  taxes. 
Fifteen  years  afterward,  the  timber  on  the  land  could  have  been 
sold  for  $40  or  $50  per  acre,  and  recently,  adjoining  land  with  no 
improvements,  has  been  sold  for  $2,000  an  acre. 

This  40  acres,  at  the  present  time,  is  a  smiling  landscape.  It  is 
now  well  known  that  all  that  tongue  of  land  between  the  river  and 
lake  nearly  a  mile  wide  opposite  Humboldt  and  running  to  a  point 
at  the  exit  of  the  river  to  the  lake,  has  a  foundation  of  limestone, 
covered  by  a  deep  soil  of  red  clay,  over  which  is  the  black  loam 
that  gathers  up  and  conveys  the  oxygen  of  the  air  to  the  soil  below ; 
such  is  the  nature  of  a  rich  soil.  No  malaria  is  ever  found  on  this 
strip,  partly  owning  to  its  elevation;  40  rods  south  of  this  land  is 
Mineral  Spring  Park.  One  mile  north  is  the  suburban  village  of 
White  Fish  Bay.  This  40  acres  lay  in  a  perfect  square,  having 
a  frontage  on  its  easten  line  of  ^  of  a  mile  on  Oakland  Avenue, 
also  a  south  front  of  ^  of  a  mile  on  the  town  line  road.  Said  road 
dividing  it  from  the  city  limits,  and  soon  to  form  a  boulevard  150 
feet  wide.  On  the  west  is  Humboldt,  y^  mile  distant.  On  the  east. 
Lake  Michigan  about  the  same  distance.  It  overlooks  a  city  of  one- 
quarter  of  a  million.  To  the  west  is  the  village  of  Humboldt  and 
the  winding  river  to  the  falls  below;  beyond  are  the  blue  hills  of 
Milwaukee,  and  the  Reservior.  Such  is  this  lovely  spot;  and  such 
is  this  lovely  outlook,  only  i^  mile  to  the  railroad  station;  where 
the  Lake  Shore  and  the  North-Western  unite  to  form  the  trunk 
line  that  runs  to  the  city;  street  cars  pass  along  Oakland  Avenue 
every  few  moments ;  what  can  enhance  the  value  of  such  a  spot  for 
a  high  school  or  university?  The  city  once  owned  40  acres  in 
Murray's  Addition  near  the  water  works,  and  gave  it  away  for  a 
hospital,  and  other  beneficiaries  of  a  public  character.  What  a 
princely  gift  this  would  be  to  the  Milwaukee  Female  College,  if 
the  city  had  it  to  give,  and  she  could  have  had  it,  had  the  board 
of  supervisors  done  their  duty  fifty  years  ago. 


Wisconsin  in  the  War  with  Mexico 

By  Henry  W.  Bleyer. 

To  write  of  "Wisconsin  in  the  war  with  Mexico,"  or  of  "Mil- 
waukee in  the  War  with  Mexico/'  involves  a  distinction  without 
a  difference.  Milwaukee  was  the  real  storm  center  of  that  eventful 
period. 

When,  in  1846,  the  news  reached  us  that  a  Mexican  force  under 
Gen.  Arista  had  engaged  in  battle  with  our  troops  under  Gen.  Tay- 
lor, we  were  soon  at  a  fever  heat.  Capt.  George  at  once  offered 
the  government  the  services  of  his  company — the  Washington 
Guards — and  Capt.  Meffert  of  the  German  Riflemen,  was  also  pre- 
pared to  place  his  men  in  the  field,  but  the  War  deyartment  seemed 
all  too  slow  to  avail  itself  of  our  good  offices  in  its  behalf.  This 
seeming  tardiness  was  in  a  large  measure  due  to  the  inadequate 
means  of  communication  between  the  East  and  the  West  rather 
than  to  any  disrespect  on  the  part  of  the  authorities  at  Washing- 
ton. Communication  by  telegraph  could  be  carried  on  only  as  far 
West  as  Buffalo  and  railway  mail  service  did  not  extend  beyond 
Kalamazoo.  News  from  Washington,  when  not  telegraphed  to 
Buffalo  and  dispatched  by  steamer,  was  usually  two  weeks  on  the 
way,  while  the  mails  from  Mexico  came  to  hand  some  four  or  five 
weeks  after  they  had  been  posted.  We  were  thus  partially  isolated 
from  the  rest  of  the  country. 

Under  these  circumstances  little  was  known  of  us  in  the  East, 
and  perhaps  less  was  expected  of  us,  though  our  territory  of  160,- 
000  souls  had  been  shown  to  have  enough  brain  and  sinew  to  form 
several  regiments  of  stalwart  men,  such  as  those  who  were  asso- 
ciated with  the  Sixth  United  States  infantry  in  driving  Black 
Hawk  and  his  savage  hordes  beyond  the  Mississippi  river. 

The  Wisconsin  Company. 

The  long  waiting  for  an  encouraging  word  from  Washington 
wearied  us  into  a  state  of  such  indifference  about  the  war  that  Capt. 
George  withdrew  the  tender  of  his  company.  Several  Milwau- 
keeans,  tiring  of  this  inactivity,  went  to  Illinois  to  volunteer  their 


WAR  WITH  MEXICO  121 

services.  Others,  in  their  zeal  to  serve  their  country,  traveled  to 
Detroit  and  more  Eastern  points,  among  them  George  A.  Mc- 
Garigle,  who  enlisted  at  Cincinnati,  and  Alexander  Conse,  a  pop- 
ular German  litterateur,  Herman  Upman  and  Carl  von  Nekow  at 
Alton,  111.  In  the  meantime  our  territory  was  called  upon  to  fur- 
nish a  company  imder  the  president's  call  for  troops.  Through  the 
influence  of  his  friend  Morgan  L.  Martin,  our  territorial  repre- 
sentative at  Washington,  Gustavus  Quarles,  a  popular  and  bril- 
liant young  lawyer  of  Southport,  now  Kenosha,  was  commissioned 
captain  of  this  company.  When  he  arrived  here,  accompanied  by 
seven  or  eight  of  his  townsmen  who  had  resolved  to  follow  him 
through  thick  and  thin,  he  realized  that  the  work  of  enlisting  men 
was  more  arduous  than  he  had  supposed  it  would  be.  The  explana- 
tion was  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  we  had  a  bitter  but  bloodless 
war  of  our  own  in  full  force.  The  foreign  and  the  American  ele- 
ments of  our  community  were  arrayed  against  each  other  on  ques- 
tions involved  in  the  drafting  of  a  state  constitution.  The  Ger- 
mans claimed  that  the  instrument  discriminated  against  them  in 
several  particulars,  especially  in  the  matter  of  the  elective  fran- 
chise. The  excitement  became  so  intense  that  the  opposing  parties, 
while  parading  in  torchlight  procession,  encountered  each  other  and 
engaged  in  battle,  their  torchhandles  serving  as  weapons.  This 
collision  so  incensed  the  Germans  that  they  resolved  to  let  the 
Americans  fight  their  own  battles  in  Mexico  and  elsewhere,  a  de- 
termination which  was  not  strictly  adhered  to,  however,  as  the 
roster  of  Capt.  Quarles'  company  indicates. 

Terms  of  Enlistment. 

Recruiting  was  more  satisfactory  on  the  advent  of  Capt.  Hend- 
rickson  of  the  Sixth  United  States  infantry,  who  posted  bills  to  the 
effect  that  each  recruit  would  receive  a  bonus  of  $12  on  enlisting, 
$7  a  month  while  in  service,  and  a  warrant  for  160  acres  of  land  or 
$100  in  cash  at  the  close  of  his  term.  Diedrich  Upmann,  J.  A.  Lieb- 
haber  and  Lieut.  Wright  canvassed  energetically  to  fill  the  Quarles 
company,  Wright  having  opened  an  office  in  Watertown  to  facil- 
itate the  movement.  The  Milwaukee  recruits,  dressed  in  jacket  uni- 
forms of  light  blue,  presented  a  creditable  appearance  as  they 
marched  through  the  streets  to  the  music  of  fife  and  drum.    They 


122  EAELY  MILWAUKEE 

drilled  almost  daily  on  Market  square,  along  Wisconsin  street  east 
to  Milwaukee  street,  and  at  times  along  the  bluff  near  a  powder 
house  situated  at  the  head  of  Martin  street.  Their  rendezvous 
was  in  Matt  Cawker's  large  frame  building  opposite  the  City  hotel, 
now  the  Kirby  house,  where  they  were  very  comfortably  situated. 
On  the  24th  of  August,  1847,  Lieut.  Abel  W.  Wright  completed  his 
enlistments  at  Watertown  and  brought  his  force  of  twenty-three 
men  to  Milwaukee  in  wagons.  Just  before  his  departure  from  that 
place  a  citizen  committee  consisting  of  Linus  E.  Cady,  Daniel  B. 
Whiteacre  and  James  R.  Eichardson  presented  him  with  a  hand- 
some sword  and  an  engrossed  testimonial  of  their  appreciation  of 
his  methods  as  a  military  officer. 

Departure  of  the  Qttarles  Company. 

The  company  having  been  brought  up  to  its  quota,  its  officers, 
Capt.  Quarles  and  Lieutenants  Upmann  and  Cady,  busied  them- 
selves with  the  preparations  for  an  early  departure.  On  Sunday, 
May  2,  1847,  three  signal  guns  announced  the  approach  of  the 
fiteamer  Louisiana,  the  boat  commissioned  to  bear  the  volunteers 
down  the  lakes.  The  recruits  hurried  to  their  quarters  and  citi- 
zens gathered  along  Wisconsin  street,  where  the  Washington  Guards, 
the  German  Eiflemen,  the  mayor  and  the  Common  Council  were 
marshaled  into  line  by  Capt.  George  as  colonel  and  Capt.  McMan- 
man  as  adjutant.  After  parading  the  principal  streets  of  the  town, 
the  company  was  escorted  out  on  the  pier,  where  Mayor  Horatio  N. 
Wells  addressed  the  departing  volunteers  and  Capt.  Quarles  re- 
sponded for  them  in  a  brief  and  soldierly  manner.  The  mayor's 
parting  words  were : 

"Soldiers !  The  step  you  have  taken  is  of  no  trifling  importance. 
The  positions  you  occupy  are  alike  honorable  and  responsible.  You 
have  made  no  slight  sacrifice — severed  no  common  ties.  You  leave 
home,  families  and  friends  to  go  to  a  distant  land,  there  to  ex- 
change a  life  of  comparative  ease  and  domestic  happiness  for  one 
of  toil,  of  hardship  and  of  danger.  May  you  submit  to  all  proper 
requirements  with  heroic  patience — meet  your  fate  with  becoming 
fortitude — obey  your  superiors  and  discharge  your  several  duties 
with  honor  to  yourselves  and  with  fidelity  to  your  country,  and  may 


WAR  WITH  MEXICO  123 

you  bring  no  disgrace  upon  the  fair  escutcheon  of  this  territory, 
whose  shores  you  are  now  leaving.  And  now  permit  me,  on  behalf 
of  the  citizens  of  Milwaukee,  to  bid  you  and  the  patriotic  officers 
and  the  soldiers  under  your  command  an  affectionate  farewell.  May 
the  god  of  battles  guide,  protect  and  return  you  to  us  in  safety  and 
honor." 

The  formalities  over,  the  Milwaukee  companies  stacked  their 
arms  and  mingled  with  the  volunteers  to  grasp  their  hands  once 
more  and  voice  a  final  good-bye.  The  friends  of  Capt.  Quarles  and 
his  lieutenants,  of  Liebhaber,  Saborga,  Brunst,  Koerner,  Schoellner 
and  other  popular  Milwaukeeans,  hastened  to  bid  them  farewell, 
husbands,  brothers  and  lovers,  in  groups  aside,  joined  in  tender, 
tearful  adieus,  while  those  without  kith  or  kin  stood  by  in  sym- 
pathetic accord  with  their  sorrowing  comrades.  The  bell  ruthlessly 
warned  all  aboard,  the  hawsers  were  slipped,  and  the  boat  moved  out 
and  off  amid  the  cheers  of  the  throng. 

The  route  of  the  company  was  to  Lake  Erie  and  thence  down  to 
the  Ohio  river  on  a  canal  which  Byron  Kilbourn  had  built  years  be- 
fore, to  a  camp  at  Covington,  Ky.,  where  several  weeks  were  spent 
in  the  usual  routine  of  a  soldier's  life.  From  this  point  they  were 
conveyed  down  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  rivers  to  New  Orleans,  and 
after  another  brief  stay,  were  shipped  across  the  gulf  of  Mexico, 
arriving  at  Vera  Cruz,  their  destination,  early  in  June.  Arms  and 
accouterments  were  provided  and  drill  in  the  manual  of  arms  was 
steadily  maintained.  The  company,  which  was  designated  as  P,  Fif- 
teenth United  States  infantry,  was  assigned  to  Gen.  Pillow's  divi- 
sion of  Gen.  Scott's  army. 

Others  Sent  to  the  Front. 

Affairs  in  Milwaukee  had  assumed  their  wonted  composure  when 
Lieut.  Wright  returned  and  renewed  enlistment  with  such  per- 
sistence that  he  was  able  at  intervals  to  send  large  squads  of  recruits 
to  a  camp  at  Newport,  Ky.  On  the  20th  of  September,  1847,  he 
marched  to  the  steamer  Niagara  with  his  last  squad  of  the  season, 
a  force  of  sixty-four  men.  Returning  before  the  close  of  navigatiooi 
he  resumed  his  work  with  such  success  that  in  the  following  Spring 
he  had  under  command  a  fine-appearing  and  well-drilled  body  of 


124  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

134  recruits.  When  the  time  came  for  their  departure,  on  the  2l8t 
of  April,  1848,  they  were  escorted  to  the  propeller  Princeton  by  fire 
engine  company  No.  1  and  a  large  following  of  citizens.  Gen.  Rufus 
King  delivered  the  farewell  address  on  this  occasion,  and  Lieut. 
Wright  replied  in  behalf  of  the  volunteers. 

On  the  15th  of  June,  1848,  Lieut.  Wright,  who  had  resumed 
charge  of  the  office,  received  orders  to  cease  enlisting  under  the 
"during  the  war"  clause  and  insist  upon  the  five-year  term. 

Our  militia  was  not  lost  sight  of  during  this  bustle  of  the  regu- 
lar service.  The  state  forces  were  organized  with  Dr.  E.  B.  Wol- 
cott  as  colonel,  J.  S.  Rowland  as  lieutenant  colonel  and  David 
George  as  major.  The  Americans  of  the  city  had  formed  an  artil- 
lery company  with  Gen.  King  as  captain,  John  N.  Bonesteel  and 
James  Kneeland  as  lieutenants,  and  William  Pitt  Lynde  as  quarter- 
master. A  third  German  company  was  organized — a  troop  of 
dragoons — with  Edward  Wiesner  as  captain  and  H.  E.  Heide  and 
Dr.  Wunderly  as  lieutenants. 

Quarles  Falls  at  Churuhttsco. 

On  the  first  of  July,  1847,  we  received  the  first  news  of  our 
company  under  Capt.  Quarles.  His  volunteers  were  glad  to  land 
at  Vera  Cruz  after  their  tedious  trip  by  water.  They  had  not  long 
been  ashore  when  they  began  to  experience  the  assaults  of  an  in- 
sidious foe.  The  dreadful  coast  fever  had  invaded  their  quarters. 
Two  comrades  had  died  and  many  others  were  in  hospital  during 
their  brief  sojourn  at  that  port.  About  the  middle  of  June  the  regi- 
ment had  been  ordered  to  the  front. 

Later  we  received  news  that  the  company  had  had  its  first  bap- 
tism of  fire  and  that  it  had  fought  valiantly  from  early  dawn  to  late 
in  the  afternoon.  It  was  at  Contreras,  a  small  fortified  town,  seven 
miles  from  the  City  of  Mexico,  that  Capt.  Quarles  had  the  gratifica- 
tion of  leading  his  men  into  their  first  regular  battle.  The  fight, 
which  had  commenced  on  the  previous  evening,  opened  before  the 
break  of  day,  and  was  conducted  by  the  Americans  with  the  des- 
perate valor  and  against  the  fearful  odds  which  characterized  that 
campaign.  Capt.  Quarles  signalized  his  gallantry  by  a  coolness  and 
self  possession  worthy  of  an  older  soldier.    The  victorious  troops 


WAR  WITH  MEXICO  125 

were  allowed  but  a  half  hour's  respite,  when,  pushing  forward,  they 
beheld  the  splendid  spectacle  of  the  whole  army  of  Mexico  drawn 
up  behind  the  fortress  of  Churubusco.  The  second  battle  of  that 
bloody  20th  of  August  began  and  ended  in  the  afternoon.  Gens. 
Twiggs  and  Worth  attacked  the  enemy  in  front.  Gen.  Pillow's 
division  was  ordered  to  cross  a  deep  marsh  and  fall  upon  their  rear. 
The  gallant  Fifteenth  regiment  led  the  van  and  opened  the  battle 
with  a  spirit  which  soon  broke  and  dispersed  the  advance  column  of 
the  vaunting  Mexicans.  Foremost  in  this  regiment,  and  excelled 
by  none,  where  all  were  chivalric,  Capt.  Quarles  fought  and  fell. 
The  fatal  bullet  struck  him  after  he  had  ascended  part  way  up  a 
slope  and  waved  his  sword  to  inspirit  his  men.  Falling  into  the 
arms  of  his  brave  companion  and  successor  in  command,  Lieut. 
Upmann,  he  was  borne  to  an  adjacent  hacienda,  where  he  breathed 
his  last,  after  assuring  Gen.  Shields,  his  commanding  general,  that 
he  was  resigned  to  his  fate,  that  it  was  glorious  to  die  on  the  field 
of  battle  for  one's  country.  In  the  morning  he  had  called  on  his 
colonel  and  requested  to  be  assigned  with  his  company  to  any  post 
of  peculiar  danger,  if  such  there  might  be.  Col.  Morgan  replied 
that  he  knew  of  no  occasion,  but  he  would  station  his  company  at  a 
post  near  the  right  of  the  regiment,  where  he  would  come  early  into 
action.  He  did  so,  and  Capt.  Quarles,  in  leading  the  desperate 
charge,  fell  gloriously  at  the  head  of  his  men. 

Beside  Capt.  Quarles,  Privates  John  Herrick  and  Moses  Whit- 
ney died  from  the  effects  of  wounds  received  at  the  storming  of 
Churubusco  and  were  buried  on  or  near  that  fateful  field.  Three 
weeks  later  Gen.  Scott  entered  the  city  of  Mexico  and  thus  prac- 
tically ended  the  war. 

The  Dead  and  Wounded. 

In  all  forty  members  of  Company  F  were  destined  never  to  re- 
turn. Privates  Shinewith  and  Mueller  died  in  camp  at  Covington, 
Ky. ;  Private  Barnard  breathed  his  last  on  shipboard  while  cross- 
ing the  gulf  of  Mexico,  and  the  remaining  thirty-seven,  with  the 
exception  of  Capt.  Quarles,  rest  in  the  land  of  the  Montezumas. 
The  roll  of  honor  runs  as  follows:  Capt.  Quarles,  John  Herrick 
and  Moses  ^Vllitney  at  Churubusco;  Enoch  Benedict,  Nicholas 
Burch,  William  Burnett,  William  Crosby,  John  Clark,  James  Davis, 


im  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Amos  Gooch,  John  Holbrook,  Frederick  Klauer,  Charles  Pratt, 
Martin  Piper,  Ernst  Schubert,  John  Steinman,  Henry  Wild  and 
John  Walkin,  at  Pueblo;  George  Brock,  Edward  Calkins,  Mathias 
Schnoerr  and  James  Wright  at  Chapultepec;  Edward  Barnard  at 
Plan  del  Rio;  Oscar  Warner  at  Perota;  James  Magone  and  John 
Bradshaw  at  Vera  Cruz;  John  Wilkinson,  John  Ziller,  John  Rice, 

George  Gimbey,  Jacob  Schebely  and  Chase,  at  Guemavaca; 

Leonard  Kissell,  Frederick  Koerner  and  John  Road  at  the  City  of 
Mexico,  and  Private  Gilliland  at  Jalapa;  John  Greiner,  missing. 
Of  the  twenty-three  whom  Lieut.  Wright  enlisted  at  Watertown 
but  six  returned,  J.  R.  Richardson,  C.  Oilman,  T.  D.  White,  Mc- 
Graw,  Scott  and  Field. 

James  Magone  was  a  public-spirited  Milwaukeean  who  had  been 
a  member  of  the  convention  which  drafted  the  first  State  constitu- 
tion. He  was  accompanied  to  Mexico  by  his  family  of  wife  and  two 
children.  They  had  no  sooner  landed  at  Vera  Cruz  than  they  were 
prostrated  by  a  fever  that  proved  fatal  to  Magone  and  the  children. 
Alexander  Conze,  who  had  enlisted  at  Alton,  fell  at  Buena  Vista, 
and  in  the  same  engagement  Carl  Van  Nekow  lost  an  eye  and  Her- 
man Upman  was  lamed  for  life  by  a  wound  in  the  knee.  Privates 
Klein,  Bastian,  Frattinger,  Hoehn,  Metzen,  Steinman,  Wright, 
Sanger  and  Brunst  were  among  the  wounded  at  Chapultepec. 

Retti/m  of  the  Survivors. 

The  few  of  our  volunteers  who  survived  the  campaign  straggled 
home  in  squads  after  they  were  paid  off  at  New  Orleans.  Capt.  Up- 
man, Liebhaber  and  other  prominent  members  renewed  their  activi- 
ties among  us.  Capt.  Upmann  when  he  had  picked  up  the  thread  of 
his  business,  was  obliged  to  relinquish  it  again  to  accept  a  land 
registership  in  Minnesota.  When  his  term  expired  he  returned  and 
built  a  hotel  on  Market  square,  which  he  ifamed  the  St.  Charles, 
after  the  famous  caravansary  at  New  Orleans,  in  which  he  had 
spent  many  happy  hours.  Liebhaber  drifted  down  to  Toledo, 
Schoellner,  Brunst  and  others  became  more  or  less  prominent  in 
the  affairs  of  our  then  young  and  growing  city,  Brunst,  in  later 
years,  successfully  conducting  the  offices  of  supervisor  and  sheriff. 
Not  one  of  these  is  now  among  the  living. 


WAR  WITH  MEXICO  127 

Many  who  were  known  by  us  as  veterans  of  that  war  were  not 
among  the  numbed  who  volunteered  in  Milwaukee.  Dr.  S.  Comp- 
ton  Smith,  the  author  of  a  book  of  Mexican  war  sketches  entitled 
"Chile  con  Came,  and  who,  during  the  Civil  war,  was  surgeon  of 
the  Fourth  Wisconsin  regiment  of  volunteer  infantry,  had  joined 
the  regular  service  in  the  East.  Col.  Thomas  Kerr  ran  away  from 
home  at  the  age  of  17  and  enlisted  in  the  Second  Pennsylvania  vol- 
unteers, with  whom  he  learned  the  art  of  war  to  such  a  degree  of 
perfection  that  in  the  Civil  war  he  rose  from  the  ranks  to  the  posi- 
tion of  colonel  of  the  Sixth  Wisconsin  Volunteer  infantry.  George 
Phillips,  a  brother  of  ex-Mayor  Phillips,  belonged  to  a  Mississippi 
regiment,  William  H.  Bradford,  received  his  commission  at  Cin- 
cinnati, and  John  C,  H.  von  Sehlen,  who  after  the  war  was  for  a 
time  employed  in  the  Milwaukee  postoflSce,  enlisted  in  New  York 
City  at  the  age  of  17,  immediately  after  he  had  arrived  from  the 
old  country. 

Not  Conspicuously  Represented. 

In  the  official  enumeration  of  the  forces  which  the  states  and 
territories  had  in  the  field  Wisconsin  is  accredited  with  but  146 
men.  This  number  relates  to  the  Quarles  company  and  its  rein- 
forcement from  time  to  time.  Nearly  1,000  Badgers  had  enlisted 
for  that  war.  Many  were  still  on  American  soil  when  the  conflict 
was  so  unexpectedly  brought  to  a  close.  Capt.  Hendrickson,  Lieut. 
Wright  and  other  officers  had  enrolled  fully  700  men.  Beside  the 
Quarles  company,  which  was  attached  to  an  Illinois  regiment,  as 
already  stated,  many  volunteers  were  secured  here  to  round  out 
companies  of  Illinois  soldiers. 

View  it  as  we  may  we  were  not  very  conspicuously  represented 
in  the  fight  with  Santa  Anna — ^yet  what  we  lacked  in  numbers  we 
far  more  than  made  up  in  true  grit.  Eighteen  years  later,  in  our 
war  of  the  Eebellion,  Wisconsin  contributed  far  more  soldiers  in 
defense  of  the  Union  than  all  the  states  and  territories  had  in  the 
field  throughout  our  war  with  Mexico. 

The  Burial  of  Capt.  Quarles. 

An  event  of  deep  solemnity  marked  the  close  of  our  connection 
with  the  war  beyond  the  Rio  Grande.  The  remains  of  Capt.  Quarles, 


128  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

which  had  been  shipped  from  Vera  Cruz  and  placed  in  a  vault  at 
New  Orleans,  were  brought  home  for  burial.  On  the  morning  of 
the  27th  of  June,  1848,  the  Washington  Guards,  the  Milwaukee 
Riflemen  and  the  Milwaukee  Dragoons,  together  with  a  large  dele- 
gation of  Odd  Fellows,  shipped  on  the  steamer  Ohio  to  pay  funeral 
honors  to  the  fallen  hero.  Shortly  after  their  arrival  at  Southport, 
the  steamer  Globe  landed  with  troops  from  Chicago  under  Col.  Rus- 
sell, his  command  including  Swift's  hussars,  Capt.  Schoeffer's  rifle- 
men and  the  Montgomery  Guards.  In  the  afternoon,  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows assembled  at  the  house  of  mourning,  where,  after  the  im- 
pressive burial  service  of  the  Episcopal  church  was  read  by  the  Rev. 
Frederick  W.  Hatch,  the  casket  was  borne  to  a  platform  in  the  pub- 
lic square. 

Judge  Evbhell's  Oration. 

Here  Judge  Levi  Hubbell,  who  had  been  invited  to  discharge 
this  sad  duty,  delivered  the  funeral  oration.  In  the  course  of  his 
eloquent  tribute  to  the  lamented  dead  he  said: 

"We  have  come  to  bury,  not  to  praise,  our  dead  brother.  His 
remains  were  sent  hither,  to  this,  his  home,  by  the  order  and  at  the 
expenses  of  the  territory  of  Wisconsin.  The  act  was  designed  as  a 
mark  of  respect  to  the  officer  and  to  the  service  in  which  he  was 
engaged.  The  country  honors  itself  by  honoring  those  who  serve 
it.  That  beautiful  sentiment  of  the  Roman  poet :  *  'Tis  sweet  and 
glorious  to  die  for  one's  country' — so  appropriate  to  the  deceased — 
would  lose  its  sublimity  if  the  state  did  not  honor  those  who  sacri- 
ficed themselves  for  her  sake. 

"Standing  on  this  hallowed  spot,  with  the  blue  canopy  of  heaven 
arching  o'er  us,  and  the  green  mantle  of  earth  spread  beneath,  I  feel 
as  if  the  kindred  spirits  of  the  universe  were  mingling  with  ours, 
and  that  they  have  come  up  hither  to  join  us  in  pronouncing  a  fare- 
well blessing  on  these  honored  remains  of  the  young  and  the  brave. 
Surely,  the  beneficent  God  of  Nature,  smiling  through  all  His 
works,  is  adding  His  blessing  to  the  solemn  rites  we  are  here  as- 
sembled to  perform.  Happy,  indeed,  would  we  be  could  we  venture 
the  hope  that  the  willing  honors  and  heartfelt  blessings  poured  over 
this  shattered  corpse  could  reach  the  immortal  spirit  which  has 


LIEUT.  DIETRICH  UPMANN 


CAPT.  AUGUSTUS  QUARLES 


WAR  WITH  MEXICO  129 

flown  to  that  undiscovered  country  from  whose  bourne  no  traveler 

returns. 

Such  honors  Illium  to  her  heroes  paid 

And  peaceful  slept  the  mighty  Hector's  shade. 

'Tou  from  Wisconsin  will  need  no  other  watchword  when  the 
bugle  sounds  'to  arms !'  than  the  magic  name  of  Quarles — the  talis- 
man  of  victory  or  death. 

"You  of  Illinois  have  before  you  a  bright  and  fadeless  page  in 
the  history  of  the  recent  war.  The  flag  of  our  country  never  spread 
its  stars  and  stripes  over  better  oflBcers  and  soldiers  than  yours. 

*  *  *  "The  earth  closes  over  our  departed  brother.  Peace, 
everlasting  peace  to  his  ashes.  Let  us  cherish  the  memory  of  his 
virtues.  Let  us  hallow  the  spot  where  he  is  buried.  Let  us  point 
it  out  to  our  children  as  the  grave  of  one  who  loved  and  died  for 
his  country.  Let  the  great  and  the  good  honor  it  as  a  place  conse- 
crated to  public  virtue.  Let  the  state  mark  it  by  a  monument  de- 
noting her  respect  for  valor  and  patriotism.  Let  all  the  people 
visit  it  and  water  it  with  tears,  that  the  world  may  know  how  much 
Wisconsin  loves  her  sons  and  mourns  their  untimely  loss.  Then 
will  the  splendid  lines  of  England's  bard  be  a  fitting  inscription  on 
the  tomb  of  our  brother." 

There  is  a  tear  for  all  who  die, 

A  mourner  o'er  the  humblest  grave. 
But  nations  swell  the  funeral  cry 

And  triumph  weeps  above  the  brave. 

The  Milwaukee  military  companies  fired  their  parting  volleys, 
the  Odd  Fellows  dropped  their  sprigs  of  evergreen  into  the  grave — 

and  all  was  over ^save  the  imdying  fame  of  him  they  had  buried. 

The  civic  and  the  military  representatives  of  the  territory  had  thus 
worthily  honored  the  first  commissioned  oflBcer  of  Wisconsin  that 
ever  died  in  the  service  of  his  country. 


Increase   Allen   Lapham 

Address  by  William  Ward  Wight  at  Unveiling  of  the  Lapham 
Memorial,  Lapham  Park,  Milwaukee,  June  18,  1915. 

Some  few  years  ago,  in  another  place,  before  a  different  garn- 
ering, the  pleasing  duty  devolved  upon  me  of  portraying  at  some 
length  the  career  and  character  of  him  in  whose  honor  we  today 
assemble.  Much  that  was  then  said  was  foreign  to  the  purpose  for 
which  we  are  now  gathered.  Some  few  thoughts  will  I  trust  bear 
repetition. 

Increase  Allen  Lapham  was  born  in  Palmyra,  Wayne  County, 
New  York,  March  7,  1811.  His  parents  were  of  Quaker  descent, 
the  family  having  its  American  origin  in  Providence,  Rhode  Island. 
His  father  was  a  contractor  on  the  Erie  canal  and  the  family's  dom- 
icile changed  with  the  father's  business  necessity.  In  about  1824 
the  family  lived  in  Lockport  where  especially  stupendous  and  in- 
tricate engineering  construction  marked  the  entry  of  the  canal  into 
the  waters  of  Lake  Erie.  Here  where  Darius  Lapham,  an  elder 
brother,  was  an  engineer.  Increase  carried  the  target  rod  and 
vernier.  Here  and  later,  on  the  Miami  canal  in  Ohio,  he  acquired 
that  skill  and  facility  in  surveying  which  made  his  early  life  here 
both  useful  and  successful. 

In  December,  1827,  he  went  to  Louisville,  Kentucky,  and  in 
1828  and  1829  he  was  employed  as  a  rodman  on  the  canal  then  con- 
structing around  the  falls  of  the  Ohio.  While  in  Louisville  he 
supplemented  the  education  of  the  field  by  a  short  attendance  at 
Jefferson  seminary.  In  this  neighborhood  among  the  river  shells 
of  the  region  he  began  his  conchological  collection.  Here  also  be- 
gan his  herbarium — a  convenient  pursuit  for  one  who  as  a  surveyor 
must  track  the  fields  and  neighbor  the  flowers.  Here  too  he  made 
observations  on  the  geology  and  climatic  conditions  of  the  country. 
Here  too  he  wrote  for  Silliman's  Journal  of  Science  and  Art  his 
first  scientific  paper.  Here  too — so  wide  was  the  range  of  his  hu- 
manities— he  became  a  member  and  an  officer  of  the  Ohio  Histori- 
cal and  Philosophical  Society.  And  all  this  when  he  was  scarce 
25  years  of  age  I 


INCREASE  A.  LAPHAM  131 

From  a  position  so  well  established,  from  a  reputation  so  favor- 
able, from  pursuits  so  congenial  and  so  stimulating,  the  desire  for 
new  fields,  the  youthful  love  of  change,  the  summons  of  his  Ohio 
friend,  Byron  Kilbourn,  brought  him  to  Milwaukee. 

Very  early  in  July  of  1836  he  arrived  in  this  little  hamlet  where 
the  aboriginal  warrior  still  stalked,  and  whose  greatest  asset  was  its 
possibilities.  He  was  easily — this  young  student  of  25  years — chief- 
est  citizen  of  Milwaukee,  a  pre-eminence  which  until  his  death  he 
never  surrendered. 

The  prospect  of  a  competence  by  the  ownership  of  land  was  one 
of  the  possibilities  of  the  growing  Milwaukee.  Mr.  Kilbourn  had 
been  a  heavy  purchaser;  Mr.  Lapham  in  a  small  way  followed  his 
lead.  His  knowledge  as  a  surveyor,  his  quickly  acquired  reputation 
for  fairness,  led  to  his  appointment  as  register  of  claims  in  the 
West  ward — or  Kilbourn  town — an  office  without  pay  established 
by  his  fellow  citizen.  Connected  with  this  registry  was  a  sort  of 
court  where  pre-emptions  were  entered  and  where,  as  a  species  of 
judge,  young  Lapham  executed  certificates  of  title  which  yielded 
in  importance  only  to  a  patent  from  the  United  States  land  office. 

On  October  24,  1838,  Mr.  Lapham  married,  his  wife  being  Ann 
M.  Alcott,  of  Rochester,  New  York.  Of  their  five  children,  all  sur- 
vive. A  daughter  of  their  son  Charles,  influenced  by  her  venera- 
tion for  her  grandfather's  worth,  did  more  than  any  other  person  to 
bestow  the  name  of  Lapham  Park  upon  this  beautiful  breathing 
place. 

Of  Mrs.  Lapham — now  more  than  fifty  years  dead — it  should 
be  stated  that  she  was  a  helpmeet  for  her  husband.  His  papers  re- 
ceived her  criticism,  all  his  labors  her  encouragement,  all  his  sci- 
entific tasks  her  assistance,  all  his  varied  successes  her  applause. 

During  the  decades  of  the  forties  and  the  fifties  Mr.  Lapham's 
pen  was  very  busy.  The  subjects  upon  which  he  employed  it  were 
80  many  and  so  varied  that  one  is  filled  with  astonishment  at  the 
fertility  and  the  variety  of  his  genius.  To  enumerate  all  his  writ- 
ings is  to  cover  all  the  then  known  field  of  useful  knowledge.  Not 
the  least  important  was  upon  the  flora  and  fauna  of  his  adopted 
state,  upon  its  grasses  and  its  forest  trees.     An  article  written  and 


132  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

illustrated  by  him  upon  the  grasses  of  Wisconsin  was  published  in 
1855.  He  described  and  made  drawings  of  eleven  species  of  grasses. 
Surely  a  man  who  lived  so  near  to  nature  and  who  bent  his  head  so 
close  to  the  earth  to  learn  its  secrets,  deserves  to  be  perpetuated  in 
yonder  charming  spot,  charming  even  in  its  present  sombre  garb, 
where  blooming  flowers  and  growing  grasses  shall  be  his  constant 
neighbors. 

Mr.  Lapham  was  intensely  interested  in  the  education  of  youth. 
On  October  7,  1846,  he  deeded  to  the  then  newly  incorporated  city 
of  Milwaukee  a  plat  of  about  thirteen  acres  in  the  present  Sixth 
ward  to  be  used  forever  for  the  purposes  of  a  High  school.  The 
common  council  accepted  the  gift,  thanked  the  donor,  appointed  a 
board  of  trustees  and  then — rested  from  its  labors!  The  land  re- 
verted to  the  grantor. 

The  name  of  Increase  A.  Lapham  appears  at  the  head  of  those 
citizens  who  on  March  1,  1851,  became  incorporated  by  legislative 
act  as  the  Normal  institute  and  the  High  school  of  Milwaukee. 
This  institution  became  later  Milwaukee  Female  college — it  is  now 
Milwaukee  Downer  college.  Of  this  girls'  school  he  became  presi- 
dent in  1851  and  so  continued  until  he  declined  further  election  in 
1863.  He  was  a  trustee  from  1851  until  his  death — ^twenty-four 
years.  In  the  welfare  of  the  young  women  gathered  in  that  col- 
lege he  was  deeply  interested,  tempering  and  holding  in  check  the 
extreme  views  of  the  early  patron  of  the  school,  Miss  Catherine 
Beecher,  yet  advocating  the  advanced  and  symmetrical  development 
of  the  feminine  mind.  His  books,  his  collections,  the  wealth  of  his 
varied  learning,  were  always  at  the  service  of  teachers  and  pupils. 

How  gladly  would  I — ^his  remote  successor  at  the  head  of  the 
trustees  of  Milwaukee  Downer  college — exhibit  to  President  Lap- 
ham the  present  institution  in  the  Eighteenth  ward,  the  seeds  of 
which  his  labors  planted  and  his  industry  watered. 

Perhaps  Dr.  Lapham — for  in  1860  Amherst  college  conferred 
upon  him  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws — is  most  fondly  remem- 
bered in  his  relation  to  the  present  weather  bureau.  Lake  Michi- 
gan was  the  blackboard  upon  which  he  practiced  his  examples.  To 
track  the  path  of  the  tempests,  to  map  their  movements,  to  follow 


INCREASE  A.  LAPHAM  133 

them  from  river  to  lake,  from  lake  to  seacoast,  these  things  were 
his  pastime — but  more  than  a  pastime,  for  he  saw  the  practical 
benefits  to  flow  from  tracing  what  before  were  believed  to  be  the 
whims  and  vagaries  of  the  weather.  Earnest  and  labored  were  his 
efforts  to  convince  mariners  and  legislators  that  the  fickle  weather 
could  be  watched  and  the  secrets  of  coming  calm  or  storm  revealed. 
He  wrote  much  on  this  and  kindred  subjects,  using  freely  news- 
paper columns.  Hence,  when  after  persistent  efforts  the  weather 
bureau  was  established  in  1870,  it  was  truthfully  stated  by  Profes- 
sor Baird  in  the  Science  Record : 

"To  Professor  I.  A.  Lapham  must  be  given  the  credit  of  having 
brought  to  a  successful  conclusion  this  long  line  of  efforts." 

By  the  summer  of  1871  Dr.  Lapham  had  investigated  the  his- 
tory and  mapped  the  position  of  every  known  meteorite  that  had 
fallen  within  the  limits  of  the  North  American  continent.  He  first 
called  the  attention  of  scientists  to  certain  lines  in  some  of  the 
irons  which  are  now  known  as  Laphamite  markings.  Nor  had  an- 
other branch  of  science  overlooked  his  name.  Dr.  Asa  Gray  of  Har- 
vard university  named  Laphamia,  a  new  genus  of  plants  of  five 
species  belonging  to  the  Southwestern  frontier.  Dr.  Lapham  might 
well  be  remembered  as  a  botanist,  for  at  his  death  his  herbarium 
consisted  of  24,000  specimens,  representing  8,000  species. 

From  the  rolls  of  scarcely  any  learned  society  was  his  name  ab- 
sent. In  Europe  much  better  than  in  his  own  country  were  his 
learning  appreciated  and  his  achievements  recognized.  He  was  an 
honorary  member  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Northern  Antiquarians 
at  Copenhagen,  and  of  the  International  Society  of  Anthropology 
and  Antiquity  of  Man. 

In  pursuits  congenial  to  his  tastes  and  beneficial  to  his  race,  Dr. 
Lapham  passed  his  busy  days  until  his  hour  came.  He  rested  not 
until  the  end  arrived.  He  died  September  14,  1875,  upon  Ocono- 
mowoc  lake,  on  the  edge  of  which  his  farm  was.  He  had  just  fin- 
ished a  paper  upon  the  lakes  of  Wisconsin  considered  in  their  rela- 
tion to  fish  production.  He  had  been  subject  to  attacks  of  heart 
failure  and  had  seldom  been  left  alone.  This  particular  day,  how- 
ever, feeling  much  improved,  he  had  taken  his  oars  as  the  after- 


134  EABLY  MILWAUKEE 

noon  wore  on  for  a  pull  upon  the  lake.  Not  promptly  returning, 
search  was  made.  A  few  feet  from  the  shore  his  boat  was  found, 
and  within,  the  body  of  our  friend  prostrate  and  lifeless. 

This  little  writing  has  but  ill  performed  its  task  if  it  has  not 
indicated  how  appropriately  a  park  in  this  city  of  his  useful  resi- 
dence bears  his  name,  and  how  surely  the  members  of  the  Old 
Settlers'  club  have  honored  themselves  by  placing  the  boulder,  with 
its  inset  medallion  of  him,  in  the  limits  of  that  park.  No  building 
should  hold  the  monument  to  him  whose  books  were  the  open  air, 
the  giant  stone,  the  blossoming  flower,  the  lowly  grass,  the  warbling 
bird,  the  fugitive  insect.  With  these  trophies  of  Nature  we  place 
him  and  we  leave  him. 

Had  the  weather  been  propitious  we  should  have  stood  by  the 
rugged  stone  while  his  granddaughter  unveiled  for  all  time  to  the 
gaze  of  the  world  the  lineaments  of  the  honored  ancestor.  Such 
ceremony  as  the  circumstances  permit  I  now  entrust  to  her  affec- 
tionate charge. 


Club  IVIembership 


Adams,  F.  F. 
Adler,  B.  D. 
Adler,  I.  D. 
Adler,  S.  D. 
Agnew,  Andrew  D. 
Allcott,  Frank  L. 
AlliK,  Oharles 
Annour,  D.  H. 
Austin,  W.  K. 

Bach,  Cairistoph 
Bacon,  B.  N. 
Bading,  G.  A. 
Barber,  Edw.  B. 
Barnard,  H.  C. 
Barth,  Peter 
Basse,  G.  D, 
Baumel,  C.   H. 
Bell,  S.  R. 
Benjamin,  H.  M. 
Bennett,  W.  H. 
Benson,  E.  A. 
Benzenberg,  Geo.  H. 
Best,  Jacob 
Biersacli,  L.  D. 
Black,  Herman 
Blanchard,  Chas.  L. 
Bleyer,  H.  W.f 
Blodgett,  F.   W. 
Bloedel,  Adam 
Bloodgood,  Francis 
Boardman,  M.  A.* 
Bogenberger,  John 
Boorse,  Washington 
Bottiim,  B.  H. 
Boyd,  James  G. 
Boyle,  Wm.  J. 
Bradford,  J.  R. 
Bradley,  Jesse  C. 
Brandner,  Nicholas 
Braman,  Percy 
Brand,  Sebastian 
Brandecker,  Frank 
Brett,  Jas.  T. 
Briggs,  W.  A. 
Bryden,  J.  W. 
Brosius,  Georget 
Brown,  A.  T. 
Bnice,  W.  G.* 
Bruns,  Henry 
Bues,  Adolph  F. 
Buestrin,  Frank  E. 
Bullock,  J.  C. 
Burdick,  A.  E. 
Burke,  Richard 
Burroughs,  George 
Buscher,  Jacob  P- 


Buttles,  Cephas 
Butler,  Jno.  A. 

Campbell,  Henry 
Carpeles,  PWlip 
Callaway,  W.  W. 
Carlson,  O.  W. 
Carpenter,  M. 
Carpenter,  Paul  D. 
Gary,  W.  J. 
Chase,  Geo.  H. 
Cheney,  Willis  L. 
Chipman,  D.  W. 
Clarke,  Wm. 
Clas,  A.  C. 
Coe,  F.  H. 
Cohen,  Henry 
Comstock,  H.  G. 
Comstock,  J.  T. 
Conrad,  Wm. 
Cooke,  B.  F. 
Cotzhausen,  F.  W.  von 
Courtenay,  C.  D. 
Courtenay,  F.  C. 
Crandall,  E,  G. 
Crandall,  John  S. 
Crosby,  F.  J. 
Cudahy,  Patrick 
Currie,  Jas. 

Dadd,  R.  M. 
Dalberg,  S.  W. 
Daly,  John 
Damkoehler,  Frank 
Danielson,  B.  J. 
Davies,  Walter  V. 
Davis,  H.  N, 
Delllcker,  J.  Henry 
Desmond,  H.  J. 
DeWolf,  John  E. 
I>ederick,  S. 
Diederick,  W.  J. 
Doepke,  Fred  D. 
Doerfler,  Christian 
Donahoe,  W.  J. 
Donges,  Jac.  F. 
Dousman,  Geo.  P. 
Downer,  Edgar 
Drake,  Harvey  W. 
Dries,  Joseph 
Droppers,  J.  D.,  Jr. 
Drought,  J.  T. 
Durr,  Wm.  E. 
Durr,  C.  C. 

Barling,  A.  J. 
Baton,  B.  A. 
Baton,  H.  L. 


136 


EAELY  MILWAUKEE 


EiCf,  John 
Eckstein,  S  .A- 
Eigner,  George 
Eimermann,  A.  J. 
Eiring,  B.  H, 
Ellis,  C.  H. 
Ellis,  Frank  R. 
Elser,  Albert  C. 
Estabrook,  C.  E. 

Fahsel,  Charles 
Falk,  Otto  H. 
Farrington,  E.  B. 
Fass,  F.  O. 
Fehlandt,  H.  F. 
Fehrer,  Joseph,  Jr. 
Femekes,  Dan'l  J. 
Funkier,  Adolph 
Fink,  Henry 
Fitch,  Grant 
Pitzgibbon,  Thos. 
Flanders,  J.  G. 
Fleming,  T.  J. 
Foerster,  Erwin 
Forster,  Chas.  G. 
Fowle,  H.  N  . 
Fox,  Frank  N. 
Frank,  Louis  F. 
Frellson,  Gustav 
Friedberg,  Joseph 
Froede,  Albert 

Gay,  Henry  M. 
Galloway,  John  M. 
Gallun,  A.  F. 
Geilfuss,  A.  B. 
Gettelman,  Adam 
Godfrey,  E.  R. 
Goebel,  Anton 
Goodman,  Wm.  E. 
Gottschalk,  S.  W. 
Graettinger,  A.  J. 
Graf,  John 
Grassier,  Edmund 
Green,  G.  J. 
Green,  J.  H. 
Greene,  W.  O. 
Greenwood,  J.  W. 
Gregory,  John  G.* 
Gregory,  John  J. 
Gregory,  H.  B, 
Grider,  Daniel 
Gross,  Philip 
Gutenkunst,  C.  A. 

Haase,  R.  C. 
Habhegger,  A.  O. 


Habhegger,  Otto  J. 
Hadden,  E.  G. 
Habhegger,  T.  F. 
Haerle,  Charles 
Halsey,  L.  W. 
Hambitzer,  C.  J. 
Hamilton,  A.  K. 
Hamilton,  Harley  H. 
Hansen,  John  E. 
Hansen,  Chris. 
Hanson,  Henry 
Harper,  Wm.  D. 
Harpke,  H.  H. 
Hase,  Henry 
Hazelton,  G.  W.* 
Hayden,  Thos.  G. 
Heath,  Albert 
Heimann,  L. 
Hellberg,  G.  A. 
Henning,  C.  W. 
Heinl,  Jno.  G. 
Heyer,  Henry 
Hildebrand,  Frederick 
Hilgendorf,  C.  F. 
Hill,  Warren  B. 
Hiller,  John  W. 
Hinsey,  Wm.  A. 
Hoe,  Richard 
HJoff,  John  T. 
Hoffmann,  Willibald 
Holmes,  J.  W. 
Holt,  J.  A. 
Hooley,  George  T. 
Horter,  John 
Houghton,  F.  W. 
Hunt,  F.  S. 
Hutchings,  J.  E. 
Hyde,  W.  F. 

Iversen,  J.  C, 

Jenkins,  James  G. 
Jermain,  Louis  F. 
Jones,  James  I. 
Joys,  A.  M. 
Joys,  Carl  C. 

Kohn,  Julius 

Kander,  Simon* 
Karel,  Jno.  C. 
Karow,  Frank  A. 
Kassner,  G.  A. 
Kasten,  C.  J. 
Kauper,  G.  F. 
Keene,  F.  B. 
Kennan,  K.  K. 
Kennan,  T.  L. 


MEMBERSHIP 


137 


Kehr,  Alexander 
Kellogg,  A.  W.t 
Kettler,  Edw.,  Jr. 
Kieckhefer,  F.  A.  W. 
King,  H.  R. 
Kirchhoff,  Chas. 
Kleist,  J.  C. 
Klein,  H.  S. 
Kindling,  Louis 
Kindt,  O.  F. 
King,  Cliarles 
Kipp,  B.  A. 
Knell,  O.  C. 
Kopmeier,  G.  J. 
Kopmeier,  J.  H.* 
Kraus,  Chas.  R. 
Krauthoefer,  W.  J. 
Kroeger,  John  S. 
Kurz,  John 
Kyuaston,  J.  B. 

Laflin,  H.  N. 
Landauer,  Max 
Lando,  Julius 
Lando,  M.  N.f 
Lange,  Chas.  J. 
Laverrenz,  Charles 
Layer,  W.  C. 
Lay  ton,  Frederick 
Lee,  G.  W. 
Leverenz,  Gustav  A. 
Leverenz,  R.  J. 
Lewis,  Joseph 
Lindsay,  Henry 
Lindsay,  E.  J. 
Letter,  Henry  G. 
Loveland,  Chas.  A. 
Luedke,  H.  A. 
Luenzmann,   Frank 
Ludwig,  J.  C. 

Mabbett,  H.  J. 
Mack,  H.  S. 
Ma  her,  John  J. 
Manegold,  Henry 
Mann,  F.  J. 
Manschot,  J.  H. 
Martin,  George,  Jr. 
Maschauer,  L. 
Maxson,  F.  O. 
Mayer,  P.  J. 
McGarigle,  B.  P. 
McGeoch,  A.  N. 
Melver,  James 
McLaughlin.  M.  J. 
Meacham,  J.  W. 
Meincke,  John 


Merrill,  Z.  T. 
Meunier,  John 
Meyer,  L.  D. 
Meyer,  Frank  J. 
Miller,  Geo.  P. 
Millman,  H.  J. 
Mueller,  Aug.  F. 
Mueller,  L.  J. 
Munkwitz,  C.  H. 
Munkwitz,  Chas.  J. 
Murphy,  Philip  H. 
Myers,  A.  B. 
Myers,  J.  O. 

Neacy,  T.  J. 
Newbouer,  N.  F. 
Nichols,  A.  B. 
Niederman,  Conrad 
Nieman,  L.  W. 
Norris,  C.  W. 
Norris,  G.  Henry 

O'Connor,  Jas.  L. 
Oertling,  Herman 
Ogden,  G.  W.* 
Ogden,  H.  M. 
O'Laughlin,  Jas.  T. 
Olle,  Michael 
O'Neil,  C.  Houston 
Ormsby,  R.  H. 
Osterman,  Albert 
Otjen,  Theo. 
Owens,  Christ.  C. 
Owen,  David  C. 
Owens,  R.  G. 

Pabst,  Gustave 
Paeschke,  Chas.  A. 
Pahlow,  Lewis  F. 
Pantke,  E.  R. 
Park,  W.  H. 
Parker,  M.  O. 
Patterson,  R.  W, 
Patton,  Wilford  M. 
Pauly,  H.  J. 
Peacock,  S.  F. 
Pfeil,  R.  J.,  Jr. 
Peirce,  J.  Frank 
Perrigo,  B.  W. 
Philipp,  E.  L. 
Phillips,  Chas.  A. 
I'ierce,  A.  J.  W. 
Pipkom,  Wm,  H. 
Poppert,  Henry  W. 
Porth,  Ed. 
Post,  Wm.  M. 
Prlngle,  T.  J. 


138 


EARLY  MILWAUKEE 


Quin,  Jeremiah* 

Raeuber,  E.  G. 
Reichenbaum,  Charles 
Randolph,  H.  L. 
Rathjen,  Wm.  E. 
Razall,  H.  G. 
Read,  Walter 
Relter,  Henry 
Ruenzel,  H.  G. 
Reuss,  Gustav 
Rich,  A.  W. 
Richardson,  George 
Richter,  Aug.,  Jr. 
Riemer,  G.  J. 
Rindskopf,  Elias 
Ritz,  August  N. 
Roberts,  Charles  B. 
Rosenberg,  J,  H. 
Rundle,  J.  P. 
Runge,  Carl 
Runkel,  A,  C. 

Salomon,  Charles 
Sayle,  R.  G. 
Schaus,  John 
Schmitt,  F.  L. 
Schmitt,  Wm.  A. 
Schneck,  F.  W. 
Schranck,  H.  C. 
Scheiderer,  J.  F. 
Schoenecker,  V.  J. 
Schoenfeld,  Henry 
Sehoenleber,  O.  J. 
Scholtke,  Christ 
Schooley,  H.  B. 
Schroeder,  Fred.  J. 
Schroeder,  Geo.  A. 
Schroeder,  Henry  H. 
Schulte,  Adolph  P. 
Schwarting,  H).  H. 
Schwartzburg,  E.  H. 
Schweitzer,  H.  C. 
Scollard,  J.  T. 
Seefeld,  Gustav  A. 
Seibert,  Edward 
Seefeld,  Henry  F. 
Seligman,  Moritz 
Seligman,  Albert 
Seymour,  Frank  M. 
Sheriffs,  Thos.  W. 
Sichling,  Geo.  M. 
Silverthom,  W,  C. 
Simonds,  Chas.  D. 
Sivyer,  C.  Milwaukee 
Smith,  Henry 


Smith,  Richard 
SpeJch,  Albert 
Spence,  William 
Spiegel,  Adolph 
Spoor,  Aaron  H. 
Spurr,  S.  G. 
Stollberg,  L.  R. 
Stark,  Henry  J. 
Starke,  Wm.  A. 
Steinman,  H.  J. 
Stim,  August 
Story,  A.  L. 
Stratton,  Walter 
Streckewald,  F.  O. 
Strohmeyer,  Geo.  W. 
Suelflow,  Frank  W, 
Suetterle,  J.  W. 
Sundin,  John  C. 
Swain,  Wm. 

Tasse,  Fred.  D. 
Tews,  Fred 
Thomas,  G.  L, 
Thomdike,  Wm. 
Thwaits,  Wm.  G. 
Toepfer,  Frank 
Trostel,  Albert  O. 
Trostel,  G.  J.  A. 
Turner,  David 
Turner,  W.  J. 

Uihlein,  Alfred 
Uihlein,  Henry 
Underwood,  Fred  D, 
Upham,  H.  A.  J. 
Utz,  Chas.  S. 
Utz,  Richard  R. 

Van  Valkenburgh,  F,  B. 
Vizay,  R.  W. 
Vogel,  A.  H. 
Vogel,  Fred,  Jr. 
Vogel,  Wm.  HL 
Vose,  Hamilton 
Wadhams,  E.  A. 
Wagner,  Chas.  M. 
Wagner,  L.  F. 
Walter,   Sebastian 
Wallber,  Emil 
Walter,  Philip 
Walthers,  F.  J. 
Watrous,  J.  A. 
Wawrzyniakowski,  M.  J. 
Weber,  Henry 
Weehselberg,  Julius* 
Wehlitz,  Chas.  L. 


MEMBERSHIP 


139 


Weissert,  A.  G.* 
Werner,  E.  C. 
VVhalen,  H.  J. 
Wheeler.  Lyman  G. 
Whipp,  Frank  H. 
White,  Thos.  J. 
Whitnall,  C.  B. 
Widule,  C. 
Wight,  Win.  Ward 
Wilbur.  Francis  P.* 
Wilde.  Ferd.  F. 
Wildish.  J.  E. 
Williams,  Fred 
Wilmanns,  Adolph 
Williams,  O.  T. 
Wil.«!on,  Frank  J. 


Wilson,  F.  L. 
Winkler,  F.  C. 
Wollaeger,  Franz 
Wright,  E.  T. 
Wurster,  E.  A. 

Yale,  Horace  P. 
Young,  Geo.  W. 
Yunker,  W.  A. 

Zaun.  J.  B. 
Zentner,  Aug.  F. 
Zirbel,  F.  W. 
Zimmermann,  Aug. 
Zohrlaut,  E. 
Zwoster,  Martin 


♦Ex-Presidents 
tLife  Members 


INDEX 

NAMES 

A. 

Abay,  H.  C 60 

Abert,  George 7,  8 

Abert,  George  A 9 

Ableman,  S.  V.  R 22 

Adlam,  Capt.  Samuel  J.  G 66,  75 

Adler,  David 10 

Akerly,  Rev 110 

Alcott,  Ann  M 131 

Alexander,  Capt.  S 67 

Allls,  B.  P.  &Go 92 

Anderson,  Capt 68 

Appleby,  Capt    67 

Arnold,  Jonathan  E 59 

Auchmoody,  Hiram  '. GO 

B. 

Baer  117 

Baker,  Dr.  E.  D Ill 

Balatka,  Hans 55 

Bangley,  Alex 58 

Barnard    125 

Bartlett,  Dr.  J.  K Ill,  116 

Bates,  Eli  30,  31 

Bean,  Dr 116 

Bean,  J.  L 34 

Beecher,  Catherine   132 

Bennett,  vessel  master  66 

Black,  John   10,  26 

Blake,  O.  A 53 

Blanchard,  Dr.  A.  W. 110 

Bleyer,  Henry  W. 10,  11,  12,  13,  120 

Blossom,  Levi  3 

Boardman,  Morillo  A 6,  9,  10,  11,  12,  13,  14,  15,  62 

Bodden,  M 9 

Bonesteel,  John  N 60,  124 

Booth,  Mrs.  Mary  H.  C 55 

Booth,  Sherman  M 22 

Bowman,  George 7,  8 

Brigham,  W.  M 10 

Brodhead,   B.   H 93 

Broich,  Hugo  von 9,  14 

Brosius,  George   60 

Brown,  James  S 51,  52,  54 

Brown,  Dr.  R.  M 113 

Brown,  Samuel 3,  7,  99 

Brown,  T.  H 9 

Bruce,  William  George 12 

Brunst    123,  126 

Bryden,  James  A 12 

Buck,  James  S 6,  7,  8,  9,  14,  15 

Burdick,  Morgan  L. 8 

Burroughs,  George  59 

Butler,  A.  R.  R 59 


INDEX  141 

O. 

Cadwell,  Henry  53 

Cadwell,  Capt 68 

Cady,  Linus  R 122 

Callaway,   Capt.   William 70 

Chamberlain,  Capt 67 

Chandler,   Daniel   H 53 

Chapin,  Alfred   54 

Chapman,  Silas  25 

Chase,  Enoch  7 

Chase,   George  H 9 

Chase,  Horace 3,  7,  110 

Cheney,  Rufus   8 

Clark,  Fred  53 

Clark,  Capt   68 

Clark,  Rev.  John  30 

CollinglK>urne,  T.  P 15 

Comstock,  Cicero  32 

Conkey,  Capt 67 

Connant,  H.  N 57 

Conse,  Alex 121 

Cooper,  James  Fenimore 17 

Corbett,  Capt 66 

Cotton,  Capt  L.  H 56 

Cramer,  Eliphalet   3,  53,  93 

Crawford,  John   7,      8 

Cross,  Capt 66 

D. 

Dadd,  John  A 5,  9,  14,  15,  110 

Dahlman,  John  8 

Davies,  Robert  8 

Dayan,  A.  G 58 

Dean,  Julia   48 

Decker  &  Seville 92 

Dewey,  Linas  N 114 

Dewey,  Mrs.   Mary 114 

Diercks,  E.  W 84 

Dixon,  Capt 68 

Dousman,  Dr.  J.  B 110,  111 

Dowe,  Dr.  J.  E 112 

Downer,  Jason   57 

Doyle,  Capt  James 66 

Drake  Bros 113 

Dunbar,  John   57 

Durige,  George  52 

Dutcher,   J.   A 85 

E. 

Edgerton,  B.  H 65 

Edwards,   Richard  L 3 

Eldred,   Elisha    110 

Eldred,  John  E 85 

Ellis,  William   76 

Ellsworth,  Mrs.  Martha  D 38 

Ellsworth  &  Davidson 76 

Emery,  Edward   57 


142  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

P. 

Fay,  B.  F 57,  59 

Feldt,   A.   C 57 

Field,  Tom   116 

Filer  &  Stowell 93 

Finch,  Asahel 52,  54,  59 

Fink,  Henry    13 

Fitzgerald,  Capt  William 67,  74 

Fowler,  Daniel  W 9,  10,  14,  50 

Frazier,  Judge   59 

Frink  &  Walker 91 

Furlong,   John    8 

G. 

George,  Capt.  David 60,  120,  124 

Glover,  Joshua   3 

Goodnow,  William 92 

Goodrich,  E.  H 98 

Gorham,  Dr.  D.  W Ill 

Graham    34 

Graham,  Wilson  W 59 

Grant,  Gen.  U.   S 100 

Gregory,  John  G 12 

H. 

Haertel,  Hiram  8 

Hall,  Philip  A 52,    56 

Halsey,  Judge  Lawrence  W 13 

Harrison,  R.  P 22 

Haskell,  Job   57 

Hatch,  Rev.  Frederick 128 

Batch   &   Patterson 110,  112 

Hathaway,  Capt 68 

Hawley,  Cyrus  3,  110 

Hazelton,  Gerry  W 11 

Heide,  H.  B 124 

Hempsted,  H.  N ' 55 

Hendrickson,   Capt    121,  127 

Henni,  Most  Rev.  John  M 60,    89 

Herrick,  John  125 

Herzer,  John   78,     79 

Hewitt,  Mrs.  Marilla 53 

Hibbard,  William   B 75 

Higby,   L.   J 88,  112 

Holliday,  James 59 

Holton,  Edward  D 93 

Horning,    F.   Y 10 

Hubbell,  Judge  Levi 128 

Hurley,  Charles   56 

J. 

Jennings,  R.  D 58 

Johnson,  Capt    66 

Johnson,  George  H.  D 9 

Johnson,  Dr.   James 113 

Johnston,  Peter   17 

Jones,   Capt    67 

Jones,  John  Paul 70 


INDEX  143 

Jones,   Peleg  G 56 

Juneau,  Peter  26 

Juneau,  Solomon 3,  7,  22^  26,  27,  50,    80 

Kander,   Simon   , 12,     13 

Keenan,  Matthew   8,    54 

Kellogg,  A.  W 28 

Kellogg,   E.    C 58 

Kellogg,   Leverett   S 28 

Kilbourn,  Byron 26,  33,  89,  94,  123,  131 

King,  Gen.  Rufus 60,  124 

Kirby    115 

Kirby,  Abner   8,    67 

Kneeland,  James   60,  124 

Koch,   Henry   C 54 

Koerner    123 

Kopmeier,  John  H. 12 

Kynaston,   Capt.  William 75 

L. 

Lane,  L.  H 8 

Langworthy,  Capt.  A.  J 85,     91 

Lapham,  Darius   130 

Lapham,  Dr.  I.  A 7,  8,  130 

Lai)ointe,  John  58 

Larigo,  Prof.  Charles  F 47 

Larsen,  Capt.    65 

Layton,  Frederick   6 

Lee,  George  W. 10,  12,  13,  108 

Lee,   Im   L 93 

Legler,  Henry  E 17 

Lewis,  Capt 66 

Liebhaber,  J.  A. 121,  123,  126 

Lincoln,  Abraham   31 

Locke  &  Richmond 58 

Ludington,    Harrison    3 

Ludington  &  Co 58,     91 

Lyman,  Milton  E 58,     59 

Lynde,  William   Pitt 124 

Lynde,  Mrs.  W.  P 110 

M. 

Mabbett  &   Breed 91 

Magone,  James  126 

Marsden,  Capt 68 

Martin,   James  B 110,  112 

Martin,  Morgan  L 50,  121 

Maschauer,  Amelia  R 54 

Masson,  Ninian  9,     10 

Matthews,  E.  P 12 

Matthews,   Miss  Helen 55 

McCormick,  Andrew   50 

McCracken    91 

McGarigle,  George  A 121 

Mclntyre,  Capt 66 

McManman,   Capt 122 


144  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Menzel,  Charles   G 103 

Menzel,  Gregor   103,  104 

Menzel  &  Stone 92,  93 

Merrill,   John   B 10 

Merrill,  William  P... 8 

McQueen,  Capt. .' 67 

Meyers,  George  E 56 

Miller,  Judge  A.  G 3,  7,  8,  31,  110 

Miller,  Galbraith   31 

Miller,  Henry   7 

Miller,  Capt.  Henry 60 

Miller,  John  101,  102 

Miller,  John  M 7,  8 

Miller,  William  B 6,   14,  15 

Mitchell,  Alexander   97,  98 

Mitchell,  Capt 74 

Miter,  Martha 43 

Mueller    125 

Mygatt,  George  W 52,  54,  58 

N. 

Nazro,  John   93 

Nazro,  Mrs.  John. . . . ; 110 

Nekow,   Carl   von 121 

Nelson,   Capt.    75 

Newbre,  Capt 67 

Noonan,  J.  A 3 

Norris,   Charles  W 13 

Noyes,  Dr.  T.  J 56 

Noyes,  Thomas  J 116 

O. 

Ogden,  George  W 7,  11,  14,  15 

Ogden,    Henry   M 10 

Ogden,  John   57 

Ogden,  John  G 14,  15 

Ogden,  William  B 97 

P. 

Page,   Herman   L 53 

Papendieck,  George   52 

Peckham,  George  W. 53,  54 

Peckham,   Ruf us  P 54 

Peckham,   W.   H 54 

Pereles,  James  M 9,  11,  14,  15 

Pereles,  Thomas  J 14,  15 

Perkins,  John  T 58 

Pettibone,  S 3 

Pheatt,  Capt 68 

Phillipps,  George  127 

Pierce,  R.  W 57 

Place,  C.   A. 9,  15 

Platto,  J.  V.  V 52 

Pomeroy,  Fenimore  C 3,  7 

Pratt,  Capt 67 

Prentiss,  W.  A 3,  7,  8 

Pritzlaff,  John    93 

Preusser,  Christian  59 


INDEX  145 

Q. 

Quarles,  Capt  Gustavus 121,  122,  125,  128,  129 

Quarles,  Judge  J.  V 19 

Quin,  Jeremiah  6,  11,  105 

R. 

Richardson,  George   ! 13,  101 

Richardson,  James  R 122 

Robinson,  Capt 67 

Robinson,  Dr.  C.  C Ill 

Roche,   Patricli  J 76,  77 

Rockwell.  John  1 22 

Rogers,  George  J 8 

Rogers,  James  H 53 

Rood,  S.  L 57 

Roundy,  J.  A 53 

S. 

Saborga 123 

Saveland,   Capt 66 

Sayers,  Henry 58 

Scheiber.   Fred    12 

SchoefEer,  Capt 128 

Schoellner,    123,  126 

Seaver,  Lucas  52,  54,  55 

Sehlen,  John  C.  H.  von 127 

Selby,  Dr.  J.  B 114,  116 

Seville,  James 88 

Sexton  &  Crane  58 

Sexton  &  Wing  58 

Sexton,    Lorin 58 

Shanks,  Mary   54 

Shepardson,  Clark    7,  41 

Shinewith 125 

Shorts,    Capt 66 

Slmonds,  CD 9,  14 

Simpson.  E.   B ^ 11,  12 

Sl\Ter,  Charles  Milwaukee  98 

Slvyer,   Frederick  W 10,  11 

Smith,  Judge  A.  D .' 59 

Smith,  A.  Hyatt  95,  96 

Smith,    Bill    34 

Smith.  Tully  H 9 

Smith,  Uriel  B 8 

Smith,  J.  Mc  D 51 

Stark,  Joshua  10 

Starr.  Elisha   3 

Swift,  George  W. 113 

Swift,  R.  IC   60 

T. 

Tate,  Capt    66 

Throop,  "Uncle  Ben,"    57 

Torry,  Mrs.  H.  D 55 

Turner,  Col 85 

Thurston 26 

Trayser,  George  A 3 

Trusloaw    75 


146  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

Turton  &   Sercomb 91 

Tweedy,  John  H 8 

Tyson,   Mark    80 

U. 

Underwood,   Lieut    74 

Upham,  Don  A,  J 3,  8,     59 

Upmann,  Capt.  Diederich 121,  122,   126 

Upman,  Herman 121 

V. 

Vail,  George    22 

Van  Cott,  A.  B 52 

Van  Vechten,  Peter,  Jr 5,  6,  10,  15,  57,  112 

Vieau,  Andrew  J 22 

Vieau,  Jacques  7 

Vinton    33 

Vliet,  Garrett   99 

W. 

Wadsworth,  Adams  &  Co 54 

Waffle,  Capt 66 

Waite,  Giles  A. 8 

Walker,  George 26 

Walker,  Isaac  P 59 

WaU,  Caleb 56 

Wallis,  W.  H 9 

Walton,  W.  B 92,  101 

Ward,  Joe   58 

Ward,  Lindsey   58 

Wardner,  Fred  3,  7,     58 

Waters,  James 102,  104 

Wechselberg,  Julius    12 

Weissert,  A.  G 11 

Wells,  Daniel,  Jr 8,     56 

Wells,  H.  N 23,  122 

Wermutb,  Otto   76 

West    34 

Whaling,  J.  P 53 

Whaling,  W.  J 54 

Wheeler,  Allen   53,     54 

Wheeler,  Roxanna  Ann 53 

White,  C.  H 22 

White,  Peter,  Sr 22 

Whiteacre,  Daniel  B 122 

Whitney,  Dr 110 

Whitney,  Moses  125 

Wiesner,  Edward 124 

Wight,  William  Ward   130 

Wilbur,  Frank  P 12,     13 

Williams,  Henry 56 

Winchell    61 

Wing,  John,  Jr 58 

Winkler,  Gen.  F.  C 13 

Wolcott,  Dr.  E.  B Ill,  124 

Wolf  &  Davidson 63 

Wright,  A.  G 11 

Wright,  Lieut.  Abel  W. 121,  122,  123,  124,  127 

Wunderly,  Dr,    124 


INDEX  147 

Y. 

Yale,  Philetus  53 

Young,  George  W 12,  13 

Young,   William  B 53 

Young,  William  P 51,  55 


SUBJECTS. 

A. 

Abolitionism — ^Trial  of  Sherman  M.  Booth 22 

Glover  Rescue 3 

American  House 34 

Amusements  of  Childhood  in  Early  Days 29 

B. 

Belleview  Hotel   56 

Booth's  Trial 22 

Bridges    63 

O. 

Carrying  the  Mail 24 

College  Inn   , 22,  34 

D. 

Druggists  of  Early  Days 110 

E. 

Early  Picnics   44 

Early  Settlers  17 

They  Were  Young  Men 57 

Early  Store-keepers 57 

F. 

Fish,   Speculation  in 22,  23 

First  Commissioned  Officer  from  Wisconsin  to  Fall  in  War 129 

First  Locomotive   101 

First  Pest  House  114 

First  School 30 

Flora  and  Fauna  of  Wisconsin  131 

Forest  Fires  of  1871 84 

Freshets    63 

G. 

German  Settlers 89 

Glover  Rescue  3 

H. 

"Hard  Winter"— 1837-8   33 

Hardships  of  Settlers 20,  30,    39 

Haunted  House 45 

I. 

Immigration  to  Wisconsin 18 

Indians  in  Milwaukee 17,  22,    42 

Indians,  Treaty  With 17 

J. 

Juneau's  Claim 26 


148  EARLY  MILWAUKEE 

K. 

Kilbourn's  Claim   26 

Kilbourn's  Railway  Enterprises 89 

L. 

La  Crosse  &  Milwaukee  Railroad 99 

La  Crosse  Shops 105 

Lands  Opened  to  Settlement 17 

Land   Speculation    25 

Lapham  Memorial  Exercises 130 

Lawyers  in  1845 59 

Lighthouse  at  Wisconsin  Street 31 

Log  House  29 

M. 

Manufacturing  in  Pioneer  Times 91 

Mexican  War   120 

Military  Companies 60 

Milwaukee  County,  Early  Boundaries 4 

Milwaukee  County  Court  House 3 

Milwaukee-Downer  College 132 

Milwaukee  House  23,  50 

Milwaukee  &  Mississippi  Railroad 95 

Muskrats  and  Red  Shirts 105 

O. 

Ocean  Voyage  from  Milwaukee 77 

Old  Settlers'  Club— History 3 

Incorijorated    6 

Relies  and  Library 6 

Social  Functions 6 

Historic  Tablets   7 

Officers  Since  1869 7 

Publication  of  Papers 13 

Ox  Teams   59 

P. 

Pest  House,  First 114 

Picnics  in  Early  Days 44 

Pioneer  Association  of  Milwaukee 4,  5 

Physicians  and  Druggists 110 

R. 

Railway  Beginnings   88 

Real  Estate  Speculation,  35 ;  Fluctuations  in  Value 51 

Real  Estate  Si)eculation 35 

Fluctuations  in  Value 51 

Recruiting  in   1846 121 

Relief  for  Forest  Fire  Victims 84 

Religious  Services  in  Pioneer  Times 32 

Rescue  on  the  Lake 80 

Revenue  Cutters,  First  on  the  Lakes 74 

S. 

Sailors'  Experiences   70 

Shipbuilding    68 

Shipping  in  the  'SOs 63 


INDEX       '  149 

Skating  On  the  Marsh 32 

On  the  River 63 

Smallpox  Epidemic  114 

School — First  in  Milwaukee 30 

In  Kilboumtown   33 

Schools  for  Girls 47 

Squatters  26 

T. 

Theatrical    48 

Topography  30,  31,  44,  64 

Trail  to  Fond  du  Lac 24 

Traveling  in  Early  Days 28,  39 

Treaty  With  Indians 17 

V. 

Vessel  Building 76 

Volunteers  Depart  for  Mexico 122,  123,  124 

W. 

Walker's  Claim 26 

War  With  Mexico 120 

For  the  Union 19 

Water  Front  and  Shipping 62 

Weather  Bureau   Founded 132 

Winter  Navigation    85 

Wisconsin  Street  Lighthouse 31 

Wreck  of  Schooner  Toledo 77 

Y. 

Young's  Block 51 


NOTICE! 

Members  and  others  in  possession  of  relics,  such  as 
useful  books,  pamphlets,  newspaper  files,  manuscript  nar- 
ratives, diaries,  and  original  documents  of  every  sort  per- 
taining to  the  early  history  of  Milwaukee,  which  they  would 
like  to  bestow  where  they  will  be  very  much  appreciated 
and  cared  for,  are  requested  to  donate  them  to  the  Old 
Settlers  Club  of  Milwaukee  County.  Such  articles  will 
be  called  for  upon  notification  by  telephone  or  letter  to  the 
Old  Settlers  Club  of  Milwaukee  County,  Milwaukee,  Room 
13,  Loan  and  Trust  Building. 


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